On Thursday, former Theranos president and chief operating officer Ramesh "Sunny" Balwani was found guilty of defrauding investors and patients of the defunct blood testing company.
Balwani was found guilty of 10 counts of wire fraud and two counts of conspiracy to commit wire fraud after nearly five days of jury deliberations. He faces up to 20 years in prison for each count of wire fraud and up to five years for each conspiracy count.
"We are obviously disappointed with the verdicts. We plan to study and consider all of Mr. Walwani's options including an appeal," Jeffrey Coopersmith, Balwani's attorney, said in a statement.
A similar verdict was reached in January against Theranos founder and ex-CEO Elizabeth Holmes. Unlike Balwani, Holmes was only convicted on four counts of seven counts of fraud against in investors but was not found guilty on charges of defrauding patients.
Theranos promised to change the medical testing industry with a machine that could run dozens of blood tests using only a single drop of blood. The company had raised nearly $1 billion from investors including Rupert Murdoch, Oracle
The company had also penned partnerships with Walgreens
Balwani and Holmes were originally charged together, but a federal judge separated their trials in 2020 after Holmes alleged Balwani had emotionally and sexually abused her. The two had met when Holmes was 18 and Balwani was 37 and began a secret romantic relationship after Holmes started the blood testing company.
Prosecutors argued Balwani conspired with Holmes to defraud investors and patients in an effort to keep the company afloat. According to prosecutors, Balwani oversaw the company's financial projects, lab operations, and the deal with Walgreens. In support, they used Balwani's own words against him, presenting a July 2015 test message to Holmes that read: "I am responsible for everything at Theranos. All have been my decisions too."
Holmes is scheduled to be sentenced in September, and Balwani will be sentenced the following November.
