Three more found guilty of fraud in Galleon insider trading probe
BROTHERS Zvi and Emanuel Goffer and a third trader, Michael Kimelman, have been found guilty of fraud, in another victory for prosecutors in the Galleon Group insider trading probe.
Zvi Goffer, 34, a former Galleon Group trader, nicknamed Octopussy, was charged with two counts of conspiracy and 12 counts of securities fraud for activities between 2007 and 2009.
Prosecutors said he was a ringleader who paid tens of thousands of dollars in bribes to two Ropes & Gray lawyers to learn what corporate deals the law firm was working on. The lawyers, Arthur Cutillo and Brien Santarlas, have pleaded guilty to criminal charges.
Emanuel Goffer, 32, was convicted on one conspiracy charge and two securities fraud counts. Kimelman, 40, was found guilty of conspiracy and two counts of securities fraud.
The three join Galleon Group founder Raj Rajaratnam, who was convicted last month of insider-related charges.
The hedge fund boss will be sentenced next month.
The case is part of a wide-ranging insider trading investigation focused on hedge funds and traders, a probe marked by the use of FBI wiretaps.