The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has charged four more former executives of Nortel Networks, the communications company, with accounting fraud. The regulator is accusing former vice-presidents of Nortel’s optical, wireline, wireless and enterprise business units of manipulating reserves to manage the company’s earnings.

Charges have already been brought against Nortel’s former chief executive, Frank Dunn, chief financial officer, Douglas Beatty, and controller, Michael Gollogly, accusing them of directing the fraud.

Commenting on the case, Christopher Conte, an associate director of the SEC’s division of enforcement, said: “The defendants charged today participated with Nortel’s former top executives to improperly maintain, establish and release reserves in order to manipulate earnings and fabricate Nortel’s return to profitability in the first quarter of 2003. Nortel’s earnings management could not have happened without their efforts”.