"A former West Coast biotech CEO has just been sentenced to more than two years in federal prison for misleading investors and stealing millions of dollars, the United States Attorney's Office for the District of Maryland announced on Monday. According to court documents and news releases, 62-year-old Oregon resident Nader Pourhassan, who was once the CEO of CytoDyn, defrauded investors from 2018 to 2021 regarding the commercialization of CytoDyn's product, a monoclonal antibody called Leronlimab."
"In April 2020, during the rise of the COVID-19 pandemic, Pourhassan publicly announced that CytoDyn had reached a critical milestone with the Food and Drug Administration when, in reality, the company's documentation was "woefully incomplete," a 2022 complaint shows. Within days, the FDA notified the company of the falsities within the news release that Pourhassan had edited and approved himself."
Nader Pourhassan, 62, served as CytoDyn CEO and made fraudulent statements from 2018 to 2021 about the commercialization of Leronlimab, a monoclonal antibody intended for cancer, infectious diseases and autoimmune conditions. He falsely claimed an FDA milestone in April 2020 while company documentation remained "woefully incomplete," and the FDA quickly notified the company of those falsities. Pourhassan edited and approved the misleading release, then liquidated his stock while prices were artificially inflated, generating net profits exceeding $4.7 million and swindling investors of over $4 million. CytoDyn later ousted him in 2022 and the SEC charged him with fraud and insider trading; a 2024 indictment alleges he fired directors who raised concerns. He received a federal prison sentence of more than two years.
Read at SFGATE
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