Goffer and Friends Convicted

Zvi Goffer, his brother Emanuel Goffer and Michael Kimelman, all alumni of the Incremental Capital hedge fund, found themselves on the wrong side of a guilty verdict this morning as prosecutors successfully concluded the second Galleon Group insider trading trial. It was only a month ago when Raj Rajaratnam was found guilty in the first trial. The three newly minted convicts each face up to 25 years in the Big House for conspiracy and securities fraud.

The hapless trio participated in two insider-trading rings headed up by Goffer and Rajaratnam. The trial featured taped conversations and cooperating witnesses. Altogether, 27 people participated in the two rings. 

The jury was decisive, convicting Zvi Goffer on 14 counts and the other two on three counts each. The three hardly put up any defense, and one, Kimelman, turned down a plea deal that would have spared him jail time. His lawyer, Michael Sommer, said:

"We are enormously disappointed with the verdict as we believed the evidence clearly showed that Mr. Kimelman had not engaged in any insider trading. We will of course pursue all avenues of appeal."

Eric Bank, Freelance Writer

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