FILE - A sign for the Seattle office of Getty Images stands, Feb. 25, 2008, in Seattle. A former technology executive has pleaded guilty to a single count of fraud involving a scheme to artificially inflate the share price of the stock photo house Getty Images, federal officials said Friday, May 31, 2024. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren, File)
SAN FRANCISCO — Robert Scott Murray, a former tech executive, has admitted to a fraud charge related to a scheme to artificially boost the share price of Getty Images, federal officials announced on Friday.
Murray, who briefly served as the CEO of networking equipment company 3Com in 2006, was charged with securities fraud for attempting to manipulate the stock price of Getty Images, a Seattle-based photo and video distributor. According to the Department of Justice, Murray owned around 300,000 shares of Getty Images Holding Inc. in April 2023 and aimed to inflate the stock's value to sell his shares at a higher profit.
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) stated that Murray issued multiple news releases through Trillium Capital, a venture investment business he owned and managed, urging Getty to sell itself or appoint him to its board. On April 24, 2023, Trillium announced a supposed bid to buy Getty Images at $10 per share, nearly double the stock’s previous closing price. While this announcement did cause a temporary rise in Getty's stock price, it did not reach $10.
Getty responded the next day, labeling the bid as “unsolicited, non-binding, and highly conditioned,” and noted that Trillium had not shown any credible evidence to support its offer. The SEC described the bid as “false and misleading,” pointing out that neither Murray nor Trillium had made any effort to secure the necessary funds for the acquisition. Additionally, the SEC highlighted that Murray began selling his Getty shares almost immediately after the market opened on April 24, before Getty could respond to his proposal. The Justice Department reported that Murray sold all his shares within less than an hour, earning approximately $1,486,467.
Attempts to contact Murray were unsuccessful. An email sent to an address on the Trillium website bounced back, and repeated phone calls to Trillium's listed number went unanswered.
Murray is scheduled to appear in federal court in Boston at a future date, according to the Justice Department.
