Ex-Enron exec settles SEC fraud case, fined $1 mln

NEW YORK, June 18 (Reuters) - A former chief executive of Enron Corp's Internet unit agreed to pay a $1 million fine to settle civil fraud charges brought by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

The SEC had accused Joseph Hirko, who had been chairman and chief executive of Enron Broadband Services, of selling large amounts of Enron stock at inflated values even as he knew of deteriorating conditions at the unit. It accused him of making misleading statements about Enron Broadband's performance and prospects at an analyst conference and in multiple press releases in 2000, the year before Enron Corp went bankrupt.

Last October, Hirko pleaded guilty to federal wire fraud charges, carrying a possible 16-month prison sentence, and agreed to forfeit improper gains to be paid to an Enron victims fund, the U.S. Justice Department said at the time. The SEC estimated the forfeiture at about $7 million.

Hirko neither admitted nor denied the SEC's allegations in settling the civil fraud charges. (Reporting by Jonathan Stempel; Editing by Tim Dobbyn)