Title: Houston Man Accused of Insider Trading after Eavesdropping on Wife’s Work-from-Home Calls, Reaping $1.76 Million
Houston resident Tyler Loudon is currently facing insider trading charges and potential jail time following allegations that he illegally profited from confidential information obtained by eavesdropping on his wife’s work-from-home calls. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced the charges against Loudon on February 22, 2023.
At the time of the incident, Loudon’s wife was a Mergers and Acquisitions Manager for BP. While working remotely, she discussed an upcoming acquisition of truck stop operator TravelCenters of America during a conference call. Unbeknownst to her, Loudon was in the same room and listened in on the conversation.
According to the SEC filing, Loudon bought 46,450 shares of TravelCenters stock after acquiring this non-public information. When the merger was officially announced and the share price surged 71%, he sold all of his shares, earning over $1.76 million in profits.
The SEC’s complaint, filed at the US District Court for the Southern District of Texas, alleges that Loudon violated the antifraud components of federal securities laws. In addition to these charges, the US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Texas announced that Loudon pleaded guilty to one count of securities fraud, which carries a maximum imprisonment term of up to five years. The sentencing in the case is scheduled for May 17, 2023.
Regarding these allegations, Loudon’s lawyer Peter Zeidenberg released a statement to CNN saying, “Mr. Loudon made a serious mistake in judgment which he deeply regrets and for which he has taken full responsibility.”
Loudon began purchasing TravelCenters stock towards the end of 2022, liquidating approximately $2.16 million in total from his individual brokerage account and Roth IRA in the process. He failed to disclose his trading activities to his wife but confessed after BP’s legal team requested her home address and personal information. As a result of her reporting the suspicious trades, she was later terminated from her position at BP.
Since the incident, Loudon’s wife has left their shared home, reduced contact with him, and initiated divorce proceedings last June as stated in the filing.
