Bond-Fraud Prosecutors Rest Case After Days of Testimony

(Bloomberg) -- After less than a week of trial, prosecutors rested their case against a former Cantor Fitzgerald LP trader accused of lying to his customers about bond prices.

Lawyers for David Demos haven't yet said if they will call witnesses in his defense when trial resumes next week. Demos told the court on Friday that he needs to consult with his attorneys before he decides whether to testify.

The government presented testimony from six witnesses, including representatives of Demos' alleged victims, Ellington Capital LLC and Marathon Asset Management, who testified about their negotiations with Demos.

‘Victim' in Bond Fraud Case Says He'd Still Deal With a Liar

Demos is charged with defrauding investors in trades between May 2012 and January 2013 by misrepresenting the prices at which his firm would buy or sell mortgage backed securities. Prosecutors say he did so to boost the firm's profit and increase his own bonus.

Defense attorneys have argued that the alleged victims were sophisticated investors who used complex analytics and disregarded statements made during negotiations.

In what may have been an effort to streamline the case for jurors, prosecutors presented fewer witnesses than they did in three prior trials focused on lies by bond traders.

Bond Fraud Trial Turns Testy When Defense Takes on Victim

Last year's trial against three former Nomura Holdings Inc. traders lasted for almost two months. Jurors cleared the defendants of the vast majority of the 27 charges, fully acquitting one, convicting one of conspiracy and failing to reach a verdict on a few other counts. A retrial in that case is scheduled for next month.

The case is U.S. v. Demos, 16-cr-00220, U.S. District Court, District of Connecticut (New Haven).

To contact the reporter on this story: Chris Dolmetsch in New York State Supreme Court in Manhattan at cdolmetsch@bloomberg.net.

To contact the editor responsible for this story: David Glovin at dglovin@bloomberg.net.

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