Following his conviction on insider trading charges, former Indiana Congressman Steve Buyer is facing a potential financial penalty of nearly $1.4 million to cover the legal expenses incurred by the affected companies. While federal prosecutors argue that Buyer should be responsible for these costs, his defense attorney contends that the amount is excessive, given Buyer's already strained financial situation.
U.S. District Judge Richard M. Berman has postponed Buyer's sentencing to July 31, 2024, to allow the Probation Department time to assess the proposed financial penalties. These include $349,846 in forfeiture of alleged crime proceeds and an additional $1.39 million for the legal costs borne by two companies involved in the case.
Buyer, a 64-year-old Republican who served in Congress from 1993 to 2011, was found guilty in March of conducting illicit stock trades while working as a consultant and lobbyist. The charges relate to his involvement in the 2018 T-Mobile and Sprint merger and his stock acquisitions in the management consulting firm Navigant, which was later acquired by his client, Guidehouse.
Prosecutors maintain that Buyer's clients divulged confidential information with the expectation of receiving his consulting services in return. However, Buyer's defense team argues that his profitable trades were the result of his own stock market research and analysis. Buyer, a former House Veterans’ Affairs committee chair and a House prosecutor during President Bill Clinton’s impeachment trial, even testified in his own defense.
The prosecution has requested a three-year prison sentence, while the defense has advocated for home confinement and community service, citing Buyer's significant financial losses due to litigation costs. According to the defense, Buyer and his wife have been forced to sell numerous assets, including their home and vehicles, and his wife will need to re-enter the workforce.
The prosecution’s letter to the judge outlines the legal fees sought by Guidehouse ($395,000) and T-Mobile ($996,800), attributing these costs to the government's investigation and prosecution. Buyer’s attorney, however, challenges these requests as both untimely and unjustified, describing the legal fees as “exorbitant” and the forfeiture amount as inflated.
