In a split verdict, a federal jury on Thursday convicted a Chicago attorney of using insider information from a friend to make a windfall in stock purchases involving an education-technology company, while acquitting the friend on all counts.
His co-defendant, Christopher Klundt, 39, of San Francisco, was found not guilty of all seven counts of conspiracy and securities fraud, a rare outcome in a building where prosecutors win more than 90 percent of cases that go to trial.In an emailed statement, Klundt’s attorney, Terence Campbell, wrote that Klundt and his family were “extremely grateful to the jury for seeing the truth in this case.
Sargent’s attorney, meanwhile, called the verdict “inconsistent” and said he would be filing a motion for post-trial judgment of acquittal. An indictment filed in January 2022 accused Sargent of obtaining non-public information from Klundt, a close friend and former colleague, about Chegg, the California-based education technology company where Klundt was a manager.