Credit: Unsplash
Tottenham Hotspur Owner Faces Possible 20-Year Prison Sentence and $50 Million in Penalties.
UK billionaire Joseph Lewis, 86, principal owner of the private investment organization Tavistock Group and majority stakeholder in English Premier League soccer team Tottenham Hotspur, has pleaded guilty to charges of insider trading in a US federal court. Lewis was accused of passing confidential information about companies he invested into private pilots, friends, personal assistants, and girlfriends, resulting in millions of dollars in illicit profits.
In a court proceeding in New York, Lewis pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy and two counts of securities fraud. The charges are related to his involvement in a scheme where he allegedly provided insider information to individuals close to him. Additionally, Lewis’ company, Broad Bay Ltd., pleaded guilty to participating in a scheme to hide his ownership of shares in a pharmaceutical company through false filings and misleading financial statements. Broad Bay Ltd. has agreed to pay $50 million in penalties as part of its plea.
British billionaire Joe Lewis pleaded guilty to securities-fraud charges, resolving an insider-trading case https://t.co/dZKDbUP9Qc https://t.co/dZKDbUP9Qc
— The Wall Street Journal (@WSJ) January 24, 2024
The US authorities assert that Lewis abused inside information gained through his access to corporate boardrooms to tip off associates. Manhattan U.S. Attorney Damian Williams, whose office prosecuted the case, stated, “Lewis abused inside information he gained through his access to corporate boardrooms to tip off his friends, employees, and romantic interests. Now, he will pay the price with a federal conviction, the prospect of time in prison, and the largest financial penalty for insider trading in a decade.”
Lewis faces a maximum possible sentence of 20 years in prison on the charges, with sentencing scheduled for March. His arrest in July 2023 marked a significant development in the case, where he allegedly encouraged his private aircraft pilots to buy stock shares in Mirati Therapeutics before the company issued favorable results from a clinical trial.
In response to the guilty pleas, Lewis’ spokesman issued a statement, saying, “Today, Joe Lewis acknowledged his conduct in connection with a number of stock trades by individuals close to him.” The statement emphasized that Lewis did not engage in improper trading in his own accounts and expressed remorse for the actions, stating that Lewis is “deeply sorry, embarrassed, and apologizes to the Court, his family, and all those who have come to rely on him.”
