SEC v. Joseph M. Dupont; Shawn Cronin; Jarett Mendoza; Stanley Kaplan; and Paul Feldman, No. LR-25768, Southern District of New York (July 5, 2023) — Press Release
raw: Joseph M. Dupont, et al.
Joseph M. Dupont, et al., No. 1:23-cv-05565 (S.D.N.Y. July 5, 2023)
The SEC charged Alexion executive Joseph Dupont and four others, including a Massachusetts police chief, for insider trading involving a pharmaceutical merger that yielded millions in profits.
The SEC filed charges against five individuals for trading on nonpublic information regarding Alexion Pharmaceuticals' acquisition of Portola Pharmaceuticals. The defendants realized over $2.3 million in direct ill-gotten gains, with individual profits ranging from $39,000 to $1.73 million. The complaint alleges violations of Sections 10(b) and 14(e) of the Securities Exchange Act and seeks disgorgement, civil penalties, and officer and director bars.
The SEC has charged Alexion Pharmaceuticals Vice President Joseph Dupont and four associates, including Dighton Police Chief Shawn Cronin, with insider trading. The scheme involved leaking confidential information regarding Alexion's 2020 tender offer for Portola Pharmaceuticals to various friends and family members. The primary defendants realized more than $2.3 million in direct profits, while additional tipped traders earned another $1.7 million. Specific individual gains included $1.73 million for Paul Feldman and $72,000 for Shawn Cronin. The SEC is seeking permanent injunctive relief, disgorgement, and bars against serving as corporate officers or directors. Parallel criminal charges were also announced by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York.
Exhibits & Attached Documents (2)
Extracted insights
- $2.30M $2.3 million $1M–$10M
- $1.73M $1.73 million $1M–$10M
- $1.70M $1.7 million $1M–$10M
- $472K $472,000 $100K–$1M
- $72K $72,000 $10K–$100K
- $39K $39,000 $10K–$100K
- person civil penalties
- person confidential information
- scheme_term insider trading charges
- person Jarett Mendoza
- person joseph m. dupont
- person nonpublic information
- person paul feldman
- person permanent injunctive relief
- agency Securities and Exchange Commission
- organization Securities and Exchange Commission
- person shawn cronin
- person stanley kaplan
- Securities And Exchange Commission filed insider trading charges
- Joseph M. Dupont tipped confidential information
- Shawn Cronin provided nonpublic information
- Stanley Kaplan provided advice on trading strategies
- Paul Feldman purchased Portola stock
- Shawn Cronin realized $72,000 in ill-gotten gains
- Jarett Mendoza realized $39,000 in ill-gotten gains
- Stanley Kaplan realized $472,000 in ill-gotten gains
- Paul Feldman realized $1.73 million in ill-gotten gains
- Securities And Exchange Commission seeks permanent injunctive relief
- Securities And Exchange Commission seeks disgorgement with prejudgment interest
- Securities And Exchange Commission seeks civil penalties
- U.S. Attorney's Office announced parallel criminal charges
- Securities And Exchange Commission appreciates assistance of U.S. Attorney's Office
U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION Litigation Release No. 25768 / July 5, 2023 Securities and Exchange Commission v. Joseph M. Dupont, et al., No. 1:23-cv-05565 (S.D.N.Y. filed June 29, 2023) SEC Charges Police Chief, Four Others in Connection with Insider Trading Before Pharmaceutical Merger On June 29, 2023, the Securities and Exchange Commission filed insider trading charges against five individuals, including a police chief in Dighton, Massachusetts, arising from trading before the announcement of a tender offer by Alexion Pharmaceuticals Inc. to acquire Portola Pharmaceuticals Inc. in May 2020. Four of the defendants traded on nonpublic information obtained, directly or indirectly, from the fifth defendant, and realized more than $2.3 million in ill-gotten gains and tipped others who realized more than $1.7 million in trading profits. According to the SEC's complaint, Joseph Dupont was a vice president and part of the acquisition team at Alexion when he knowingly or recklessly tipped confidential information about the acquisition to his close friend Shawn Cronin, the police chief. Cronin allegedly then provided the information to Jarett Mendoza, another close friend, and to family friend Stanley Kaplan, who provided advice to Cronin on trading strategies. In turn, Kaplan allegedly provided the information to his friend and colleague, Paul Feldman. The SEC's complaint alleges that Cronin, Mendoza, Kaplan, and Feldman purchased Portola stock and/or out-of-the money call options prior to the announcement, on the basis of the material, nonpublic information they received. The complaint further alleges that Kaplan and Feldman passed the information on to other family members and friends, who profitably traded. On the day of the acquisition announcement, Portola's stock price increased more than 130 percent. According to the SEC's complaint, filed in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, the defendants' approximate ill-gotten gains were as follows: Cronin - $72,000; Mendoza - $39,000; Kaplan - $472,000; and Feldman - $1.73 million. The other traders who allegedly received nonpublic information from either Kaplan or Feldman saw profits of an additional $1.7 million. After realizing their profits, Kaplan texted Feldman in Russian, "Let's hope our golden goose will continue laying golden eggs!" The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York also announced parallel criminal charges on June 29, 2023. The SEC's complaint charges all five defendants with violations of Sections 10(b) and 14(e) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rules 10b-5 and 14e-3 thereunder, and seeks permanent injunctive relief, disgorgement with prejudgment interest, and civil penalties. The complaint also seeks officer and director bars against each defendant. The SEC's ongoing investigation is being conducted by Margaret Spillane, Matthew Lambert, and Alison Conn of the New York Regional Office under the supervision of Thomas P. Smith, Jr. The SEC's litigation will be led by Ms. Spillane and Ms. Conn. The SEC appreciates the assistance of the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York, the FBI, and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority. SEC Complaint
U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION Litigation Release No. 25768 / July 5, 2023 Securities and Exchange Commission v. Joseph M. Dupont, et al., No. 1:23-cv-05565 (S.D.N.Y. filed June 29, 2023) SEC Charges Police Chief, Four Others in Connection with Insider Trading Before Pharmaceutical Merger On June 29, 2023, the Securities and Exchange Commission filed insider trading charges against five individuals, including a police chief in Dighton, Massachusetts, arising from trading before the announcement of a tender offer by Alexion Pharmaceuticals Inc. to acquire Portola Pharmaceuticals Inc. in May 2020. Four of the defendants traded on nonpublic information obtained, directly or indirectly, from the fifth defendant, and realized more than $2.3 million in ill-gotten gains and tipped others who realized more than $1.7 million in trading profits. According to the SEC's complaint, Joseph Dupont was a vice president and part of the acquisition team at Alexion when he knowingly or recklessly tipped confidential information about the acquisition to his close friend Shawn Cronin, the police chief. Cronin allegedly then provided the information to Jarett Mendoza, another close friend, and to family friend Stanley Kaplan, who provided advice to Cronin on trading strategies. In turn, Kaplan allegedly provided the information to his friend and colleague, Paul Feldman. The SEC's complaint alleges that Cronin, Mendoza, Kaplan, and Feldman purchased Portola stock and/or out-of-the money call options prior to the announcement, on the basis of the material, nonpublic information they received. The complaint further alleges that Kaplan and Feldman passed the information on to other family members and friends, who profitably traded. On the day of the acquisition announcement, Portola's stock price increased more than 130 percent. According to the SEC's complaint, filed in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, the defendants' approximate ill-gotten gains were as follows: Cronin - $72,000; Mendoza - $39,000; Kaplan - $472,000; and Feldman - $1.73 million. The other traders who allegedly received nonpublic information from either Kaplan or Feldman saw profits of an additional $1.7 million. After realizing their profits, Kaplan texted Feldman in Russian, "Let's hope our golden goose will continue laying golden eggs!" The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York also announced parallel criminal charges on June 29, 2023. The SEC's complaint charges all five defendants with violations of Sections 10(b) and 14(e) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rules 10b-5 and 14e-3 thereunder, and seeks permanent injunctive relief, disgorgement with prejudgment interest, and civil penalties. The complaint also seeks officer and director bars against each defendant. The SEC's ongoing investigation is being conducted by Margaret Spillane, Matthew Lambert, and Alison Conn of the New York Regional Office under the supervision of Thomas P. Smith, Jr. The SEC's litigation will be led by Ms. Spillane and Ms. Conn. The SEC appreciates the assistance of the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York, the FBI, and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority. SEC Complaint