A jury has convicted Sunny Balwani, the former boyfriend of Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes, of 12 counts of fraud, CNN reports.
He now faces up to 20 years in prison.
The government called two dozen witnesses during the lengthy trial in San Jose, California in an attempt to convince jurors that Balwani lied to investors to take their money.
In contrast the defense called just two witnesses, arguing he truly believed the company’s failed technology worked. The couple met while on an educational trip in China to learn Mandarin.
The jury found him guilty of all 12 counts. In contrast, another jury found Holmes guilty of four of the 11 counts she faced.
Holmes dropped out of Stanford to devote to Theranos full time in 2005. Four years later, Balwani would join the company. The two had become romantically linked in 2002 despite a 20 year age difference. The older Balwani would join Theranos in 2009 having already established himself as a successful tech entrepreneur.
According to Bloomberg, the jury deliberated for nearly five days. Balwani faces up to 20 years in prison and $250,000 in restitution for each count of wire fraud and each conspiracy count.
Holmes is scheduled to be sentenced in September and faces anywhere from nine to 17 years in prison.
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