New indictment boosts charges against Rajaratnam
NEW YORK (AP) — Federal prosecutors boosted their insider trading charges case Tuesday against the Sri Lanka-born man they say was behind history’s largest hedge fund insider trading case.
The rewritten indictment accuses Galleon Group founder Raj Rajaratnam of making up to US$45 million from trades based on secretsA prosecutor has said in court that the total of his illicit gains may top US$50 million.
The indictment adds two securities fraud charges against Rajaratnam. It also expands the time frame for some of the alleged crimes from months to years.
The fresh indictment resulted from what prosecutors say they learned as a result of some defendants who have pleaded guilty in a case that has resulted in charges against 21 people, many of them formerly high-level executives with major corporations.
Rajaratnam, 52, has denied the charges that were first brought with his October arrest. Once described as one of wealthiest men in the United States, Rajaratnam remains free on US$100 million bail.
Dan Gagnier, a spokesman for Rajaratnam, declined to comment yesterday.
If prosecutors win conviction, they say he could now face up to 185 years in prison. Previously he faced 145 years.
The indictment also strengthened allegations against a co-defendant, Danielle Chiesi, who, like Rajaratnam, has pleaded not guilty to charges in the case. If convicted, the 44-year-old Chiesi could face 155 years in prison
Prosecutors are also seeking the forfeiture of US$49 million — US$45 million of which they say was made illegally by Rajaratnam and US$4 million of which they say was illegally made by Chiesi. When the pair was first indicted, prosecutors had sought US$20.8 million.
Both Rajaratnam and Chiesi live in Manhattan. A message left with a lawyer for Chiesi was not immediately returned yesterday.