NEW YORK, October 18 (RIA Novosti) - One of America's wealthiest men charged as part of an insider-trading case surfaced in a separate probe into allegedly raising funds for a Sri Lankan terrorist group, The Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday.
Federal agents uncovered documents showing that Raj Rajaratnam, a portfolio manager for Galleon Group, a hedge fund with assets worth up to $7 billion under management, was among several wealthy Sri Lankans in the U.S. whose donations to a Maryland-based charity made their way to the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, the paper said, citing people familiar with the probe.
The Tamil Tiger terrorist group fought a brutal separatist war against the Sri Lankan government for three decades until it was defeated in May, the paper said.
Rajaratnam, 52, with his wealth estimated at $1.5 billion, was among six people arrested Friday in what the Federal Bureau of Investigation said is the largest-ever, hedge-fund insider-trading case, the paper reported.
Federal prosecutors charged Rajaratnam with securities fraud and conspiracy to commit securities fraud. Prosecutors allege Rajaratnam and his ring of alleged co-conspirators earned $20 million in improper gains.
