NEW YORK — British billionaire Joe Lewis pleaded guilty to U.S. insider trading charges on Wednesday after being accused last year of a scheme that prosecutors said was designed to enrich friends and associates, and apologized to a judge for his conduct.
Lewis, 86, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit securities fraud and two counts of securities fraud under an agreement with the U.S. Attorney’s office in Manhattan. As part of the plea deal, Lewis can appeal if the judge in the case sentences him to prison time, his lawyer David Zornow said.
Sentencing was scheduled for March 28.
Lewis, whose family trust controls a majority of the Tottenham Hotspur soccer team, was charged in July 2023 with passing inside information on his portfolio companies to two of his private pilots as well as friends, personal assistants and romantic partners, enabling them, according to prosecutors, to reap millions of dollars of profit.
Addressing U.S. District Judge Jessica Clarke during a hearing on Wednesday, Lewis said he knew at the time that what he was doing was wrong.
“I am so embarrassed and I apologize to the court for my conduct,” said Lewis, who in July had entered a plea of not guilty.
Lewis was charged by federal prosecutors with 16 counts of securities fraud and three counts of conspiracy for conduct that occurred from 2013 to 2021. While Lewis will not plead guilty to the other counts under the terms of his deal, Clarke said she may consider them for sentencing purposes.
“The law applies to everyone, no matter who you are or how much wealth you have,” Damian Williams, the U.S. Attorney in Manhattan, said in a statement.
The pilots, Patrick O’Connor and Bryan Waugh, also were charged. They also pleaded not guilty in July.
Broad Bay Ltd, a Bahamian entity owned by Lewis that prosecutors said helped him hide his ownership of Mirati Therapeutics shares, also entered a guilty plea on Wednesday and agreed to pay a $50 million fine. Broad Bay also agreed…
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