/ 19 May 2023

Scammer in the slammer

Image source: Getty
Image source: Getty

It’s been a bad week for convicted fraudster Elizabeth Holmes… If the name sounds familiar, she founded Theranos – a Silicon Valley startup which raised close to a billion US dollars on the promise they could test for hundreds of diseases using only a few drops of blood – except that they couldn’t. But before she was exposed, Holmes got extremely famous and attracted investments from big names, including media mogul Rupert Murdoch. Yesterday, a US court ruled that Holmes (and her business partner/ex-boyfriend) must pay back US$452 million to their investors, including US$125 million to Murdoch. Holmes also found out this week that she’ll have to prison ASAP. She was convicted of wire fraud in January but has stayed out of jail while appealing the sentence. Not any longer… Holmes will start her 11-year sentence soon – a lock-up date is yet to be set.

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