Insider trading has always been one of the primary offenses associated with the term “white collar crime”. It has resulted in charges against corporate executives, politicians and internationally-renowned celebrities.
With that as the backdrop it is no surprise that The New York Times recently reported that insider trading remains a fixture of securities enforcement.
According to a story published on New Year’s Day, insider training remains a focus for the Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission (“Insider Trading Remains a Fixture for Securities Enforcement“, The New York Times).
The report points to four specific examples of recent insider trading prosecutions:
- William T. Walters: A famous gambler, Walters had his conviction for insider trading affirmed by the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in Manhattan on December 4. He is currently serving a five-year prison term for making trades based on advice he received from the former chairman of Dean Foods. His team hoped to prevail on the strength of their argument that government agents had behaved improperly in the investigation. The court agreed there was misconduct but decided the misconduct did not taint the investigation.
- Sean Stewart: Also on December 4, prosecutors moved forward with a retrial in Stewart’s case. Stewart, a former investment banker, is accused of tipping off his father to impending deals. This comes on the heels of an appeals court invalidating his convictions after agreeing that information which would undermine his father’s testimony were improperly excluded by the trial judge.
- Jun Ying: The former chief information officer at Equifax, Ying was unsuccessful in his effort to have a Federal District Court in Atlanta dismiss the insider trading charges against him.
- Rajeshwar R. Gannamaneni: Along with his wife and father, the information technology contractor stands accused of trading ahead of 40 deals over four years. The three defendants are accused of making over $600,000 from the trades.
These examples highlight the complexity of insider trading cases, and that the government will spare no expense in prosecuting them. If you find yourself on the wrong end of insider trading charges, it is imperative that you have a strong legal defense from proven white collar defense attorneys.