Theranos ex-president Ramesh ‘Sunny’ Balwani found guilty of fraud
- The ex-boyfriend of founder Elizabeth Holmes faces up to 20 years in jail for his role in the collapse of the US$9 billion blood-testing start-up
- The pair were tried on charges of lying to investors and patients about the accuracy and capabilities of Theranos’ machines
Ramesh “Sunny” Balwani, the former president of Theranos Inc. and ex-boyfriend of its founder Elizabeth Holmes, was found guilty of fraud for his role in the collapse of the US$9 billion blood-testing start-up.
The decision on Thursday comes six months after Holmes was convicted of defrauding investors in the company, which promised to revolutionise the medical industry by using a few drops of blood to complete a wide array of health tests.
Balwani faces as long as 20 years in prison on the charges.
The pair were tried on charges of lying to investors and patients about the accuracy and capabilities of Theranos’ machines. As problems came to light, the company fell apart amid regulatory crackdowns, shareholder lawsuits and recriminations. The failure spawned books, a documentary and a television series.
While Holmes was the public face of the company, prosecutors said Balwani played an integral role. Jurors weighing his fate heard some of the same damaging evidence that led to Holmes’s conviction, including emails and texts tying the pair together, both professionally and romantically.