A high-stakes game of insider trading has landed a Minneapolis man with a hefty slew of charges after a federal jury found him guilty of exploiting secret business deals for financial gain. Doron "Ron" Tavlin, 68, has been tried and convicted of one count of insider trading conspiracy and ten counts of securities fraud, in connection to the acquisition of Mazor Robotics by Medtronic, Inc., as announced by First Assistant U.S. Attorney Ann M. Bildtsen.
The trial revealed that from January 2018 to August 2020, Tavlin, alongside Afshin "Alex" Farahan, 57, of Los Angeles, schemed to trade on confidential information regarding the $1.6 billion takeover deal. Tavlin, who picked up the illicit data through his VP post at Mazor Robotics, fed details to Farahan. Farahan then purchased more than $1 million in Mazor stock, swiftly selling it post-acquisition announcement for a profit exceeding half a million dollars. This move was meticulously orchestrated over the months of August and September 2018, evidence at the trial showed. In a statement obtained by the U.S. Attorney's Office.
Tavlin's downfall was further cemented by his attempt to cover his tracks. When the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) began investigating suspicious trading patterns, Tavlin falsely denied recognizing names on a list of Mazor securities traders, which included Farahan. The investigation ultimately unraveled the conspiracy and its monetary kick-backs, such as a $25,000 check from Farahan to Tavlin in October 2019 for his inside information, as detailed by the prosecutors.
While Tavlin awaits sentencing, his co-defendant David Jay Gantman, 58, of Mendota Heights, breathed a sigh of relief as he was acquitted on similar charges. However, Farahan had already pleaded guilty to his part in the insider trading conspiracy on August 4, 2022. Sentencing hearings for the guilty participants are to be scheduled, marking the conclusion of the FBI-led investigation. Notably, Tavlin's conviction follows a nine-day trial before U.S. District Judge Donovan W. Frank, according to information released by the U.S. Attorney's Office on February 20th.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Matthew S. Ebert, Robert M. Lewis, and William C. Mattessich were the forces behind the prosecution, piecing together the web of deceit that has now led to Tavlin's fall from grace in the high-stakes world of corporate trading. The case stands as a stark warning to those who would game the system for personal profit—a reminder that the law's reach is long and that justice, although sometimes slow, is inevitable for those who seek to undermine market integrity.
