Silicon Valley has long been a hub of great power and wealth, but recent convictions of tech executives show that even the smallest misstep can bring it all crashing down.
Trevor Milton, the founder of Nikola, was recently sentenced to four years in prison for securities fraud. Milton’s outsized personality and ambitious idea to disrupt freight with hydrogen electric semi trucks attracted partners and investors, but allegations of fraud led to his downfall.
Elizabeth Holmes, the founder of Theranos, was once lauded as a trailblazer in the healthcare industry. But after her startup dissolved and revelations of deception were brought to light, she was finally sentenced to 11 years in prison following a brutal four-month trial.
At startup Ozy Media, a phone call with bankers led to its downfall. A strange voice on a conference call purported to be a YouTube executive, causing suspicions to grow. Executives pleaded guilty to their roles in the scheme to defraud investors, and the CEO was indicted on conspiracy fraud charges.
The founder of Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange, pleaded guilty to a number of violations brought by the Department of Justice and other U.S. agencies. Binance plans to pay about $4.3 billion to resolve the DOJ’s investigation, and the founder may face up to 18 months in prison.
CEO Mark Schena of an allergy test startup was sentenced to eight years in prison for defrauding investors and the federal government. Like Elizabeth Holmes, Schena made bold claims about his company’s testing ability, but also defrauded the government by billing Medicare $77 million for fraudulent COVID-19 and allergy tests.
Sam Bankman-Fried, once seen as a savior of the crypto world, now faces a maximum of 115 years in prison for massive crypto fraud. His cryptocurrency exchange FTX had a faulty balance sheet and was eventually found to have shocking misuse of funds.
Finally, Mike Rothenberg, once a Silicon Valley darling, has been convicted on 21 counts, including bank fraud, false statements, money laundering, and wire fraud. While he won’t be sentenced until March, his conviction marks the end of his career as a maverick venture capitalist.