Theranos founder Holmes ordered to prison, pay victims

Theranos founder Holmes ordered to prison, pay victims

Former Theranos CEO Elizabeth Holmes is to report to prison in the US on May 30 to begin serving time after efforts to remain free while appealing her fraud conviction failed
Former Theranos CEO Elizabeth Holmes is to report to prison in the US on May 30 to begin serving time after efforts to remain free while appealing her fraud conviction failed. Photo: JUSTIN SULLIVAN / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/Getty Images via AFP
Source: AFP

Fallen US biotech star Elizabeth Holmes must begin serving prison time after a judge denied her latest request to remain free while appealing her fraud conviction.

Holmes was sentenced to just over 11 years in prison for defrauding investors with her Silicon Valley start-up Theranos.

She was scheduled to begin doing time behind bars in late April, but her lawyers lodged a last-minute appeal on procedural issues after an earlier attempt was denied.

US Judge Edward Davila on Tuesday denied the new request and in a separate ruling ordered Holmes and her top Theranos lieutenant, Ramesh "Sunny" Balwani, to pay $452 million to victims of their fraud.

Holmes is to report to prison on May 30 to begin serving her sentence, Davila said in a written order.

According to media reports, the judge has recommended that she do her time at a women's prison in Texas.

Read also

Biden says 'confident' in reaching deal to avert default

PAY ATTENTION: Join Legit.ng Telegram channel! Never miss important updates!

Holmes was found responsible of duping investors into believing that she had developed a revolutionary medical device.

The 39-year-old became a star of Silicon Valley when she said her start-up was perfecting an easy-to-use test kit that could carry out a wide range of medical diagnostics with just a few drops of blood.

But her company flamed out after a Wall Street Journal investigation into the validity of the tests.

Holmes had a child shortly before her trial and has had a second since her conviction.

Source: AFP

Authors:
AFP avatar

AFP AFP text, photo, graphic, audio or video material shall not be published, broadcast, rewritten for broadcast or publication or redistributed directly or indirectly in any medium. AFP news material may not be stored in whole or in part in a computer or otherwise except for personal and non-commercial use. AFP will not be held liable for any delays, inaccuracies, errors or omissions in any AFP news material or in transmission or delivery of all or any part thereof or for any damages whatsoever. As a newswire service, AFP does not obtain releases from subjects, individuals, groups or entities contained in its photographs, videos, graphics or quoted in its texts. Further, no clearance is obtained from the owners of any trademarks or copyrighted materials whose marks and materials are included in AFP material. Therefore you will be solely responsible for obtaining any and all necessary releases from whatever individuals and/or entities necessary for any uses of AFP material.