Report Details Ebbers’ Role in WorldCom’s Fall

Former WorldCom Inc. Chief Executive Bernard J. Ebbers participated in meetings in which company executives discussed ways to make the firm’s revenue appear higher than reality, according to an investigative report to be released Monday.

The in-depth report provides new information about Ebbers’ role in the $11-billion accounting scandal that led to the telecommunications company’s bankruptcy filing, but it makes no conclusions about Ebbers’ actions at those meetings, a WorldCom board member said.

Dennis Beresford, who was appointed to the WorldCom board after the company filed for bankruptcy protection, said Ebbers and other senior executives who are potentially facing criminal charges did not talk to the investigators who prepared the report at the company’s request. That forced the investigators to rely on documents and memos that did not always provide full details.