British billionaire in New York federal court Joseph Lewis (owner of the investment Tavistock Group and the English Premier League football club Tottenham Hotspur) made a deal with prosecutors and pleaded guilty to securities fraud related to insider trading, reports Reuters from the court hearing. Lewis, among other things, lent $500,000 to two of his private jet pilots and encouraged them to buy shares of Mirati Therapeutics, which is developing cancer drugs, pending trial results. reports CNBC.
RBC news agency, 01.25.2024, “The owner of Tottenham admitted guilt in the case of passing on inside information to his mistress”: Tavistock Group, 86-year-old Lewis’s family trust, controls most of the Tottenham Hotspur football team. In 2023, the businessman was accused of passing inside information about the companies he owned to his romantic partner, friends, personal assistants, and two private pilots, Patrick O’Connor and Brian Waugh. […]
As The Athletic clarifies, by romantic partner we mean 33-year-old Carolyn Carter, who is called “the Girlfriend” in the court materials. While visiting South Korea, he gave her inside information about stocks, due to which she earned $849 thousand. They maintained a romantic relationship from 2013 to 2020. — Insert K.ru
Lewis’s company, Broad Bay Ltd, also decided to make a deal with the prosecutor’s office. She pleaded guilty to the same case: she concealed her ownership of shares in a pharmaceutical company by filing falsified financial statements. Broad Bay will pay a $50 million fine as part of its guilty plea. Lewis, 86, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit securities fraud and two counts of securities fraud under agreement with the US prosecutor’s office, Reuters reports. Lewis faced a sentence of up to 20 years in prison on these counts, and up to 45 years in prison on all counts. As part of the plea deal, Lewis could appeal if the judge in the case sentences him to prison, the billionaire’s lawyer David Zornow told Reuters.
The court set sentencing for March 28, 2024. It will take place on the same day and in the same courthouse as the announcement of the verdict for the founder of the FTX cryptocurrency exchange Sam Bankman-Fried — the sentence for the former crypto-billionaire and resident of the Bahamas will be pronounced in the morning, and for Lewis in the afternoon, the agency notes. According to Tavistock’s own data, the company invested in luxury real estate on the Bahamas beach in Albany, where Bankman-Fried lived and was arrested in 2022. Lewis was accused in July 2023 in communicating inside information about their portfolio companies to two of their private jet pilots, as well as to friends, personal assistants and partners.
According to prosecutors, this resulted in millions of dollars in profits. Addressing U.S. District Judge Jessica Clark during a Jan. 24 hearing, Lewis said he knew at the time that what he did was wrong. “I am so ashamed and I apologize to the court for my behavior,” Lewis said. In July he stated about his innocence. Lewis will plead not guilty to the other charges under the terms of the deal, but Judge Clark said she may consider them for sentencing.
Forbes.ru, 07/28/2023, “The owner of Tottenham is accused of fraud, the club is preparing for sale”: In turn, prosecutor Damian Williams is confident that Lewis’s dissemination of insider information “was not necessary because “he is a rich man.” The British businessman used his opportunities not for personal gain, but to encourage his subordinates, friends and mistresses. “This is classic corporate corruption. This is a fraud. And it’s illegal,” Williams added.
Lewis was accused of passing on non-public information about companies including Mirati Therapeutics MRTX.O , Solid Biosciences SLDB.O and Australian Agricultural Company AAC.AX from 2019 to 2021. From 2013 to 2018, Lewis allegedly conspired to defraud Mirati, the SEC and investors by using shell entities to hide his more than 20% stake in the cancer treatment company. […]
Lewis’s Tavistock Group holds stakes in more than 200 companies around the world, and the businessman’s art collection boasts works by Picasso, Matisse, Degas and many more. The Briton’s business in 13 countries includes a chain of pubs, country clubs and hotels. Lewis also has business ties to golfers Tiger Woods, Ernie Els and entertainer Justin Timberlake, with whom he built an oceanfront resort in the Bahamas that opened in 2010. […] Lewis’s company invests in real estate, biotechnology, energy, agriculture and sports. In 2001, he bought Tottenham, one of the London football clubs, from Alan Sugar for $28 million. […] The total value of the club in 2023 is estimated at $2.8 billion. – Box K.ru
US Attorney’s Office presented Lewis is charged with 16 counts of securities fraud and three counts of conspiracy. According to the prosecutor’s office, the billionaire committed these actions from 2013 to 2021. Prosecutors believe Lewis collected insider information about four companies in which he invested through his hedge fund. These included Solid Biosciences, Australian Agricultural Company, Mirati and BCTG Acquisition Corp (SPAC, a special purpose acquisition company that merged with Tango Therapeutics in 2021). Lewis, according to prosecutors, hid the extent of his assets in Mirati by investing through a trust and a shell company registered in the name of his granddaughter and employee. Mark Herr, a spokesman for Lewis, said Lewis did not engage in improper trading in his own accounts, Reuters reported.
“The law applies to everyone, no matter who you are or how much wealth you have,” Manhattan U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said in a statement, as quoted by Reuters. Pilots Patrick O’Connor and Brian Waugh were also charged and pleaded not guilty in July. The plea agreement for Broad Bay (a Bahamian company owned by Lewis) requires Lewis and his companies to give up seats they control on the boards of American companies.
By according to Forbes Real-Time, Lewis’s fortune as of January 24 is estimated at $6.2 billion. Over the past day it decreased by $7 million (0.12%). According to Forbes USA, Joe Lewis owns the Tavistock Group (more than 200 assets in 13 countries) and, through the Tottenham investment company, a stake in the British pub operator Mitchells & Butlers. During the trial, the billionaire was released on bail of $300 million, secured by his Aviva yacht and private jet, writes Reuters. The court barred Lewis from traveling outside the United States, boarding his yacht or traveling on his private jet except for court appearances, and limited his travel to New York, Florida and Georgia, where the billionaire has real estate.
International biopharmaceutical company Bristol Myers Squibb announced on January 23 the successful completion of the acquisition of Mirati Therapeutics. Upon completion of the transaction, Mirati shares ceased trading on the Nasdaq. The price of Mirati shares on the last day before delisting was $58.7 per share. Tango Therapeutics shares rose by 10.65% on January 24, to $12.57 per share.
