Prosecutors called John R. Sult, a former Arthur Andersen accountant who worked on Enron's global water business, Azurix.

Sult, who now is the Chief Accounting Officer for El Paso Energy, said Enron, in late 2001, considered what he thought were unethical methods to avoid a loss in Azurix's value.

In order to fill a financial hole after buying back all of its outstanding stock, Enron had to consolidate Azurix into another Enron subsidiary or pursue a growth strategy for it independently.

"You get the perception it's all for show," Sult said.

But in cross-examination, the defense got Sult to admit that Ken Lay's name was not on any of the documents he testified about and that Lay was not involved in the accounting.

Tom Bauer, another former Arthur Andersen accountant who worked on the Enron account, will testify next, likely sometime Monday afternoon.

Ben Glisan, Enron's former treasurer who is serving a five year prison sentence for conspiracy, takes the stand later this week.

This is the eighth week of the Enron trial. Prosecutors are supposed to rest their case sometime next week.