SAN JOSE, Calif. — The government got its chance Tuesday to cross-examine Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes about allegations of fraud tied to the failed blood-testing startup.
Over several hours of testimony, the prosecution peppered Holmes with questions ranging from lab reports with doctored logos, a multimillion-dollar home, alleged retaliation against a whistleblower and her acrimony towards a dogged reporter.
The first round of questioning focused on Holmes’ reaction to the reporting attempts in 2015 by then-Wall Street Journal reporter John Carreyrou, who was pursuing a story on the company.
Assistant United States Attorney Robert Leach showed the court text messages between Holmes and her former boyfriend, Theranos Chief Operating Officer Ramesh "Sunny" Balwani, demonstrating their preparations for a visit by Carreyrou amid concerns that he would write something negative. Balwani said they would “nail" the reporter, and Holmes said she had a meeting with opposition research firm Fusion GPS to dig around for details on the reporter.
“I think I mishandled the entire process of the Wall Street Journal reporting,” Holmes said Tuesday.
Leach then asked Holmes about her treatment of Erika Cheung, a former Theranos employee and whistleblower who had raised concerns on multiple occasions about quality issues with the company's signature blood-testing devices. Cheung testified earlier in the trial that after she left the company, Theranos sent her threatening legal letters...
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