WHAT A HEEL: Green-Eyed Monster
In a deal with prosecutors, NYC attorney Brien Santarlas - who pleaded guilty to insider trading charges arising from the government’s case against Galleon Group hedge fund founder Raj Rajaratnam - testified against Zvi Goffer, a former Galleon trader who later started his own investment firm, Incremental Capital. Santarlas, 34, who has been disbarred and faces up to 25 years in prison, hoped his co-operation would be a mitigating factor when he is sentenced, The Associated Press reports:
After pleading guilty to securities fraud and conspiracy, Santarlas was testifying in the hopes that he'll win leniency from a potential 25-year prison sentence.
The one-time attorney at the corporate firm Ropes & Gray said he agreed to join the insider trading scheme after he spoke with a lawyer friend who knew a stock trader willing to pay cash for good tips about mergers and acquisitions.
"While we were making good money, it seemed like nothing compared to the money on Wall Street," Santarlas told jurors.
Santarlas said he made a deal to steal secrets about public companies from the files of other lawyers at his firm. He said he accepted $25,000 in cash after his first big tip about the acquisition of a technology company in September 2007.
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