John Younis, Insider Trading Scheme, Massachusetts 2022

BOSTON — John Younis, 59, of Bristol, R.I., has pleaded guilty to trading on inside information about a Massachusetts company’s planned acquisition of a California semiconductor company. In a scheme that netted Younis a significant profit, he traded on non-public information obtained by his friend David Forte from Forte’s relative, a senior executive at Analog Devices, Inc. (Analog), a Norwood-based semiconductor company.

According to the charging documents, Forte allegedly obtained material non-public information from his relative about Analog’s planned acquisition of Linear Technology Corp. (Linear), a semiconductor company based in Milpitas, Calif. Forte then passed the information to Younis, who purchased shares of Linear stock and call options in the week leading up to the public announcement of the acquisition on July 26, 2016. Younis also tipped a business associate to purchase Linear shares.

After the deal was announced, Younis and his associate sold their Linear securities at a profit. Younis’s scheme highlights the ease with which insiders can exploit their access to non-public information for personal gain.

The charge of conspiracy to commit securities fraud provides for a sentence of up to 25 years in prison, five years of supervised release, and a fine of $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss, whichever is greater. The charge of securities fraud provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of $5 million.

Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes that govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case. Younis is scheduled to be sentenced on June 29, 2022.

United States Attorney Rachael S. Rollins and Joseph R. Bonavolonta, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Office, announced the guilty plea. The Securities & Exchange Commission provided valuable assistance. Assistant U.S. Attorney David M. Holcomb of Rollins’ Securities, Financial & Cyber Fraud Unit is prosecuting the case.

The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The remaining defendants, David Forte and Gregory Manning, have pleaded not guilty and are awaiting trial.

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