The prosecutor behind Elizabeth Holmes' conviction said the fall from the entrepreneur's Silicon Valley cover girl to a felon serves as a warning story.
Former federal prosecutor John Bostic has played a pivotal role in putting Holmes behind the bar, warning other entrepreneurs following the disgraceful career lead of the founder of Terranos.
“The economy benefits from a high-tech startup and an aggressive ecosystem of investors,” Bostic, who currently works as a partner at the global law firm Cooley, told Fox News Digital.
“Investors need to approach even the most hyped investments in skepticism, and founders need to be wary of drawing accurate pictures of their companies, twice as much in highly regulated industries like life sciences.”
Convicted CEO con artist Elizabeth Holmes says life in Lockup is “hell” in his first prison interview
Elizabeth Holmes, founder of Theranos Inc., will arrive at Federal Prison Camp Brian, Brian, Texas, on May 30, 2023. (Sergio Flores/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Holmes stole hundreds of millions of dollars investors by mistakenly claiming that he invented a device that could perform complex medical tests with a drop of blood.
In November 2022, Holmes was sentenced to 11 years in prison after being convicted of fraud and conspiracy, and ordered to pay the victim $452 million in reparations.
“There are things I would have done differently,” Holmes, 41, said in an interview with people. “I refused to plead guilty to a crime I didn't commit. Terranos failed. But failure is not a fraud.”
Inmates hope to become friends with Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes before arriving at Texas prison
Despite her beliefs, Holmes claims that she was innocent and not affected by greed.
“A fraud case almost always comes down to the defendant's intentions,” Bostic said. “Even if the evidence shows that the defendant said something untrue, only half of the prosecution's work is done. They need to prove that the defendant actually deceived and fooled someone.”
On March 17, 2023, Terranos founder Elizabeth Holmes, accompanied by his partner Billy Evans in San Jose, California, arrives in federal court. (Reuters/Carlos Barrier)
Holmes' trial revealed that Terranos was not a fake, but her claims were.
“The ju-describers have heard from several investors who have similar explanations about how the wrong thing they heard from Holmes persuaded them to invest,” Bostic told Fox News Digital. “And critically, the former employee testified about the true circumstances of Terranos and what Holmes knew.”
Earlier this year, the federal court of appeals supported Holmes' conviction, boldly threw her hopes of being released from prison. Holmes and former business partner Ramesh “Sunny” Balwani alleged that legal errors were made during the trial after the court granted the witness's testimony but denied others.
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Elizabeth Holmes, founder of Theranos Inc., will arrive at Federal Prison Camp Brian, Brian, Texas, on May 30, 2023. (Sergio Flores/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
While in prison, the two mothers are allowed to visit with her partner Billy Evans and their two children, Holmes said. She gave birth to her oldest child shortly before the trial began, and her second child three months before her sentence began.
“I always wanted to be a mother,” Holmes told people. “I didn't really think I was convicted or found guilty.”
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Holmes will be held at Federal Prison Camp Barran in Brian, Texas, and is scheduled to be released on March 19, 2032. Upon release, she hopes to continue working in the healthcare and technology industry.
“To put your family in pain in my way will kill me,” Holmes said. “But looking back at my life and these angels that have come into it, I can get through anything.
Mollie Markowitz and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
