A Texas man is accused of banking nearly $2 million after listening in on his wife’s work-from-home conversations about a company merger, then buying and selling relevant stock shares.
Tyler Loudon, 42, has been charged with insider trading by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in connection with the February 2023 announcement of oil company BP’s acquisition of TravelCenters of America. Per the SEC, Loudon's wife, who is not charged and was allegedly not aware of her husband's actions, served as a mergers and acquisitions manager for BP at the time.
“We allege that Mr. Loudon took advantage of his remote working conditions and his wife’s trust to profit from information he knew was confidential,” Eric Werner, Regional Director of the SEC’s Fort Worth Regional Office, said last week. “The SEC remains committed to prosecuting such malfeasance.”
In the SEC complaint, available here, it’s noted that Loudon’s wife “moved out of their house” after he admitted to buying and selling the stocks, which officials say saw him earning $1.7 million that will now be forfeited. Furthermore, the woman, who is not named in the complaint, had “initiated divorce proceedings” as of June of last year.
Meanwhile, per the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Texas, which also announced charges, Loudon has pleaded guilty to securities fraud. Loudon now faces the possibility of up to five years behind bars and a fine of $250,000. Sentencing is slated for this May.
