Former Heads of Hedge Funds Face Major Prison Time

Filed in archive Hedgetalk on February 7, 2007

John H. Whittier, the former head of hedge fund Wood River Capital Management has been indicted on several counts of criminal charges including a securities fraud scheme that allegedly cost investors $88 million, he could serve as much as 20 years on each count.

It was alleged that Whittier schemed to defraud investors and falsely represented his hedge fund.

Another hedge fund head, Ira S. Chilowitz, has last week also pleaded guilty to four counts relating to the theft of information regarding hedge funds, conspiracy, transportation of stolen property, theft of trade secrets, and unauthorized computer access. He faces a total maximum sentence of 26 years' imprisonment and a maximum fine of $850,000.

Chilowitz conspired with a former morgan stanley representative to misappropriate the Client Rate List and to transmit it, via e-mail to his partner. He admitted in court during his guilty plea that he took the confidential and proprietary information from Morgan Stanley because it would potentially assist him in generating business for a consulting firm they had planned to launch.