SEC questions Mourant du Feu in Enron investigation

Jersey company Mahonia, which is the subject of an Enron-related investigation by the Jersey Financial Services Commission, was set up and controlled by Mourant & Company, part of Mourant du Feu.
It is alleged that JP Morgan used Mahonia to forward secretive multimillion pound loans to Enron. These were allegedly disguised as trades so they did not appear as debt on Enron's books. JP Morgan says these were legitimate 'pre-pay' deals and denies any wrongdoing.
Michael Oke, a spokes-man for Mourant du Feu, which also denies any wrongdoing, said: "We've been named in a notice. The notice is a Jersey Financial Services notice served in the course of investigating Enron. The notice's names include various Mourant entities, as they have information relevant to the investigation of Enron. The firm has, therefore, been providing documents relating to Mourant's ownership, establishment of Mahonia, and anything arising in respect of the role of Mahonia."
The partnership has not met with the commission and so far the inquiry has been limited to the provision of information.
While Mourant & Company officially runs and owns Mahonia, US senators have alleged that Mahonia was in fact controlled by JP Morgan. In a transcript of official senate investigation, senators alleged that this was the case, despite Mahonia being "involved in other transactions other than those engaged with Enron". JP Morgan denies controlling Mahonia, but it admits the company has performed regular structured finance transactions on its behalf.
Oke said there is a "popular misconception" that Mahonia was set up to help Enron, which neither established nor controlled Mahonia. Mourant du Feu set up Mahonia as a charitable, non profit making trust 10 years ago.