SAC Capital Management, Insider Trading, New York 2013

Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara and FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge George Venizelos announced today the unsealing of insider trading charges against four companies – S.A.C. CAPITAL ADVISORS, L.P. ("SAC Capital LP"), S.A.C. CAPITAL ADVISORS, LLC ("SAC Capital LLC"), CR INTRINSIC INVESTORS, LLC ("CR Intrinsic"), and SIGMA CAPITAL MANAGEMENT, LLC ("Sigma Capital"), collectively (the "SAC Companies").

The SAC Companies are responsible for the management of a group of affiliated hedge funds, collectively (the "SAC Hedge Fund" or "SAC"). Charges were also unsealed today against RICHARD LEE, a portfolio manager employed by SAC Capital LP, who focused on "special situations" like mergers and acquisitions, private equity buy-outs, and corporate restructurings in publicly-traded companies across various industry sectors.

Lee pled guilty on July 23, 2013, before U.S. District Judge Paul G. Gardephe, to conspiracy and securities fraud charges in connection with his work at SAC Capital LP.

The SAC Companies are charged with criminal responsibility for insider trading offenses. These alleged offenses were committed by numerous employees, occurred over the span of more than a decade, and involved the securities of more than 20 publicly-traded companies across multiple sectors of the economy.

It is charged that the acts of these employees were made possible by institutional practices that encouraged the widespread solicitation and use of material, non-public information ("Inside Information"). This activity allegedly resulted in hundreds of millions of dollars in illegal profits and avoided losses at the expense of members of the investing public.

The SAC Companies are expected to be arraigned on the charges on tomorrow at 10:00 a.m. before U.S. District Judge Laura Taylor Swain.

Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said: "A company reaps what it sows, and as alleged, S.A.C. seeded itself with corrupt traders, empowered to engage in criminal acts by a culture that looked the other way despite red flags all around. S.A.C. deliberately encouraged the no-holds-barred pursuit of an 'edge' that literally carried it over the edge into corporate criminality. Companies, like individuals, need to be held to account and need to be deterred from becoming dens of corruption. To all those who run companies and value their enterprises, but pay attention only to the money their employees make and not how they make it, today’s indictment hopefully gets your attention."

FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge George Venizelos said: "Our aim all along has been to root out the wrongdoers, and send a message to anyone else inclined to break the law. If your information 'edge' is inside information, you can’t trade on it."

According to the allegations in the five-count Indictment and the criminal Information to which Lee pled guilty, both of which were unsealed today in Manhattan federal court:

The SAC Hedge Fund operated as a collection of dozens of individual trading portfolios that covered nearly every trading sector of the economy. Each portfolio was headed up by a portfolio manager ("PM"), and supported by one or more research analysts ("RA"). SAC PMs had substantial discretion in managing the investments in their own portfolios, and were required by the SAC Companies to share the investment recommendations in which they had the greatest confidence with the owner of the SAC Companies (the "SAC Owner"). The SAC Owner managed the largest trading portfolio at SAC.

From 1999 through at least 2010, numerous employees of the SAC Companies obtained and traded on Inside Information, or recommended trades based on such information to SAC PMs or the SAC Owner. To date, eight SAC Company PMs and RAs have been charged and/or convicted in insider trading cases involving the SAC Hedge Fund, including Lee, who was charged and pled guilty earlier.

The SAC Companies are responsible for the management of a group of affiliated hedge funds, collectively (the "SAC Hedge Fund" or "SAC"). Charges were also unsealed today against Richard Lee, a portfolio manager employed by SAC Capital LP.

Defendant: S.A.C. CAPITAL ADVISORS, L.P., S.A.C. CAPITAL ADVISORS, LLC, CR INTRINSIC INVESTORS, LLC, SIGMA CAPITAL MANAGEMENT, LLC, and RICHARD LEE

Criminal Charges: Conspiracy and Securities Fraud Charges

City and State: Manhattan, New York

Date: July 23, 2013

Sentence or Outcome: Richard Lee pled guilty to conspiracy and securities fraud charges

Dollar amounts: Hundreds of millions of dollars in illegal profits and avoided losses

"SAC Capital Management, Insider Trading, New York 2013"

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