Former Goldman Sachs’ director Rajat Gupta, on trial over insider trading charges, has decided against testifying in his own defence.
Mr. Gupta’s lawyer Gary Naftalis informed about the decision to U.S. District Judge Jed Rakoff in a brief letter on Sunday.
The move came two days after the lawyer said it was “highly likely” that Mr. Gupta would take the witness stand in his trial.
Mr. Gupta has denied that he passed secret corporate information about Goldman Sachs and Proctor and Gamble, which he became privy to during company board meetings, to convicted hedge fund founder Raj Rajaratnam.
If convicted, the IIT-educated executive faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison on the conspiracy charge and 20 years in prison on each of the securities fraud charges.
