It could well be that this potential deal-cutter will lay bare what I think are the likely connections between the Galleon case, and the ongoing SEC investigation into options and stock trading immediately prior to the Merck-Schering-Plough deal announcement on March 9, 2009.
This guy was high enough up in the scheme that -- if he cuts a deal -- the entire (allegedly) criminal enterprise will be quickly-unmasked. We shall see. Recall that earlier, an ex-Merck patent guy (who had gone on to become a Ropes & Gray patent litigation associate) was arrested, and in highly-sensational fashion, in his office, as the case unfolded.
Per The New York Times legal blog, just a few minutes ago -- do go read it all:
. . . .Anil Kumar, a former McKinsey & Company director accused of leaking information in the Galleon Group hedge fund case, has agreed to waive indictment.
According to a court document filed on Wednesday, the United States attorney’s office in New York said it intended to file more documents related to Mr. Kumar’s case with the court.
Such documents, known as an “information,” typically indicate that some sort of deal has been reached between prosecutors and the defendant.
McKinsey said on Dec. 4 that Mr. Kumar had left the company after being placed on leave.
Earlier this month, Galleon’s founder, Raj Rajaratnam, and an executive at New Castle Funds, Danielle Chiesi, pleaded not guilty to charges of securities fraud after the two were indicted in what prosecutors contended was the largest insider trading ring arrest in history.
Prosecutors had accused Mr. Kumar of providing Mr. Rajaratnam inside information about Advanced Micro Devices, a company Mr. Kumar advised. . . .
To be clear, no current or former Merck or Schering-Plough employee is known to have been named as a target, nor have the companies been implicated in the illicit trading, by the SEC -- thus far. Their bankers and lawyers, on the reverse merger, particularly, on the other hand, have to be considered as among the potential targets of the investigation -- still ongoing.
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