New York:
Indian-American Anil Kumar, former director of consulting firm McKinsey, has pleaded guilty to fraud charges in the largest insider trading case in US history, admitting that he got US $1 million for giving secret information to its alleged ringleader Raj Rajaratnam.
"From 2003 through 2009, Kumar and Rajaratnam, who met in the 1980s while they were both at the same business school, conspired to engage in insider trading," a statement from US Attorney Preet Bharara's office said.
"Kumar received amounts ranging up to one million dollars in certain years," it said.
Kumar, 51, who left McKinsey after being put on indefinite leave, had been accused of providing insider information about McKinsey's clients, including acquisition of ATI Technologies Inc by Advanced Micro Devices Inc.
On Wednesday, prosecutors claimed that Rajaratnam made 19 million dollars in illegal profits from the ATI tip-off but his lawyer John Dowd said that the news of ADM acquiring ATI was already public.
Last week, Kumar waived his right to be indicted raising speculations that he would confess his alleged wrongdoings.
He pleaded guilty to conspiracy and securities fraud at a hearing before District Judge Denny Chin in Manhattan on Thursday, and Bharara said that he was cooperating with the investigation.