NOVEMBER 6, 2009 Five Cooperating Witnesses Propel Federal Probe
Complaints Filed Thursday Offer Map To Possible Future Charges in Case
By SUSAN PULLIAM
The government's fast-moving insider-trading case is being built on
information from five cooperating witnesses, some of whom received
information from investors and companies that haven't been charged in
the probe, potentially broadening the case, people familiar with the
matter said.
Three of the cooperating witnesses have a common link -- they all
worked at the same New York hedge fund and then went off to launch
their own funds.
Raj Rajaratnam, alleged head of an insider-trading ring, leaves court
on Thursday.
The complaint released Thursday named two additional cooperating
witnesses in the government's insider-trading case against Raj
Rajaratnam, founder of hedge fund Galleon Group: Steven Fortuna, of
Boston hedge fund S2, and Gautham Shankar, a proprietary trader at
Shottenfeld. Mr. Rajaratnam has denied wrongdoing.
They join three others -- Roomy Khan, Ali Far and Richard Choo-Beng
Lee -- who were previously identified by The Wall Street Journal as
cooperating witnesses in the case. The cooperators have pleaded guilty
to charges including conspiracy and insider trading and are
cooperating in the hope of getting lighter penalties, investigators
say.
Among the hedge funds Mr. Lee has agreed to provide information on is
SAC Capital in Connecticut, according to a person close to the
situation.
According to Mr. Lee's plea agreement, the U.S. attorney's office has
agreed not to prosecute Mr. Lee for inside trading from "about 1999 to
in or about 2004 in connection with Mr. Lee's employment with a
certain hedge fund located in Connecticut." The hedge fund referenced
in the plea agreement is SAC Capital, according to a person close to
the situation.
A spokesman for SAC Capital declined to comment.
The complaints filed against Ms. Khan, Mr. Lee, Mr. Far and Mr.
Fortuna list multiple co-conspirators, most of whom aren't named but
who could still be charged in the burgeoning probe, the people
familiar with the matter say.
Jeffrey L. Bornstein, a lawyer for Mr. Lee, said his client "intends
to fully cooperate" with the government. A lawyer for Mr. Far declined
to comment. Richard Schaeffer, a lawyer for Mr. Fortuna, said "Mr.
Fortuna has accepted responsibility for his conduct." A lawyer for Ms.
Khan didn't return calls. A lawyer for Mr. Shankar declined to
comment.
The ties between Messrs. Lee, Far and Fortuna stretch back to their
days at New York hedge fund Stratix. Messrs. Lee and Far left Stratix
at the end of 2007 to form their own hedge fund, Spherix, in March
2008. That fund closed in March, around the time Messrs. Lee and Far
began cooperating with the government, people close to the situation
say.
Mr. Fortuna also worked at Stratix for one year before forming a hedge
fund, named S2, which shut down earlier this year as well, people
close to the situation say.
Richard Grodin, one of the founders of Stratix, was subpoenaed in the
probe in recent weeks, people close to the situation say. Mr. Grodin
hasn't been accused of wrongdoing or named in the probe. Federal
investigators have said more defendants could be charged in the probe,
and the complaints filed Thursday against the cooperators provide a
road map of possible future charges, people close to the situation
say.
Mr. Fortuna's complaint lists as co-conspirators two other hedge-fund
managers, each of whom allegedly fed him inside information. Neither
hedge fund is named but, according to the complaint, one of the hedge-
fund managers gave Mr. Fortuna information about a Massachusetts
company, while another gave him information about a Texas company.
Mr. Lee's complaint alleges he was exchanging information with at
least six companies and one investor-relations firm as well as three
hedge-fund managers who aren't named in the complaint. Mr. Far's
complaint alleges he was exchanging information with four companies
and four current or former hedge-fund managers who aren't named. The
complaint alleges Messrs. Lee and Far paid some of their sources
$2,000 per quarter in exchange for information. Other co-conspirators
were paid $1,000 per quarter for information, the complaint alleges.