NEW YORK, NY - Former SAC Capital Advisors portfolio manager Mathew Martoma has asked a U.S. judge to dismiss his insider trading convictions on the grounds that federal prosecutors failed to prove he committed any crime, and because improper evidence and jury bias tainted the verdict, Reuters reported. The request was filed Feb 27 in U.S. District Court in Manhattan. Martoma was convicted Feb. 6 on two counts...
of securities fraud and one count of conspiracy. “This court should enter a judgment of acquittal on all counts,” the 39-year-old Indian American said in the filing before U.S. District Judge Paul Gardephe, who presided over the trial. At the least, Martoma said he deserves a new trial. Martoma was accused of obtaining and trading on confidential information about a clinical trial involving Elan Corp and Wyeth (now part of Pfizer) regarding an experimental drug to treat Alzheimer’s disease. Prosecutors said the trades allowed SAC, a hedge fund run by Steven A. Cohen, to profit and avoid $275 million in losses in Elan and Wyeth before the trial’s results were disclosed in July 2008. Martoma could face several years in prison when he is sentenced June 10. While eight people who once worked for SAC have been convicted of or pleaded guilty to insider trading, Cohen has not been charged in the case.