4 men charged with insider trading, plus leaking Apple info

Yesterday, the SEC and other federal agencies took a microscope to alleged insider trading activities and other charges by four defendants: Walter Shimoon (Flextronics VP, Business Development), Mark Longoria (AMD’s supply chain manager), Manosha Karunatilaka (Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co Ltd) and James Fleishman (sales manager at an anonymous “expert networking” company).
The men have been charged with various accusations — among them, leaking corporate secrets about Apple and other companies. It appears that Fleishman hired the other three men as “consultants,” and in at least one case, court documents suggest that Shimoon coughed up confidential info about the iPhone 4 and iPad in advance of Apple’s unveiling for undisclosed compensation.
A strongly worded statement from Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara puts the investigation into context: “… charges allege that a corrupt network of insiders at some of the world’s leading technology companies served as so-called ‘consultants’ who sold out their employers by stealing and then peddling their valuable inside information.” The investigation into these men’s activities is on-going.
First, a Gizmodo editor has his house ransacked by the authorities for his part in outting the iPhone 4 prototype earlier this year, and now this. It seems the world of Apple leaks is taking a rather “Law & Order” kind of bent these days. Will it hurt the rumor scene? Hard to say. Rumor-mongering at fan sites is one thing, but in business, insider trading is no joke. We’ll have to see if the business insiders who often fuel the tech gossip will be tighter-lipped now.

source :  http://www.todaysiphone.com/2010/12/4-men-charged-with-insider-trading-plus-leaking-apple-info/