A former top lawyer for Apple, fired after the SEC charged him with insider trading, was formally indicted on multiple charges of wire and security fraud, the U.S. Attorney in New Jersey announced today.
One of Gene Levoff’s responsibilities for Apple was to guard against the very activity that finds him in trouble.
According to the indictment, Levoff traded stock during “blackout” periods when employees are forbidden to buy or sell company stock. A blackout takes effect prior to Apple publishing quarterly earnings.
“When Levoff discovered that Company-1 had posted strong revenue and net profit for a given financial quarter, he purchased large quantities of stock, which he later sold for profit once the market reacted to the news,” the indictment read.
Levoff joined Apple in 2008 and had been senior director of corporate law for five years, when he was fired in September 2018.
The stock purchases and sell-offs listed in the indictment took place from 2011 to 2016.
He was indicted on six counts, three for security fraud and three for wire fraud. If convicted, he faces 20 years in prison for each count.
Levoff gained more than a quarter of million dollars in profits on some trades. He also avoided $377,000 in loses for other trades, the indictment said.
Levoff was in charge of enforcing Apple’s insider trading policy. In February, the Securities and Exchange Commission filed a civil case against Levoff.
Source: CNBC
