13-Year Prison Term Handed Down To Former Theranos Partner

SAN JOSE, CA — A former executive of the infamous health company Theranos was sentenced to nearly 13 years in prison Wednesday for his role in the company's blood-testing scheme. The sentence is slightly longer than the one given to Elizabeth Holmes— the company's CEO, his former lover and accomplice.

Ramesh "Sunny" Balwani, 57, learned the severity of his punishment just weeks after Holmes was sentenced to more than a decade in prison.

Balwani arrived in court Wednesday at 10 a.m., months after he was convicted in July of fraud and conspiracy. The scandal revolved around the company’s false claims to have developed a medical device that could scan for hundreds of diseases and other potential problems with just a few drops of blood taken via a finger prick.

The case illuminated a darker side to Silicon Valley’s, exposing how its culture of hype and boundless ambition could veer into fraud.

READ MORE: Judge Requests Elizabeth Holmes Serve Prison Sentence In Texas: Report

Into the afternoon on Wednesday, U.S. District Judge Edward Davila heard objections put forth by Balwani's legal team during the lengthy sentencing. Each was overruled, according to NBC reporter Scott Budman.

Around 1:30 p.m., a sentence still hadn't been reached, and the prosecution was insisting that Balwani get a sentence of 15 years in prison, Budman reported on Twitter.

The announcement of the sentence came down around 2:30 p.m., a court spokesperson told Patch.

Theranos was once valued at a staggering $9 billion. But once it was learned that the technology could only run a dozen blood tests with unreliable results — the company and its leaders, Holmes and Balwani, fell from great heights. The company shut down in 2018.

Holmes, 38, was sentenced to 11 1/4 years in prison for her role in the scheme. She could have gotten up to 20 years in prison — a penalty that did not befall Balwani on Wednesday.

Balwani spent six years as Theranos' chief operating officer while romantically involved with Holmes until a bitter split in 2016.

Four years ago, Holmes and Balwani were first indicted together on the same 12 criminal charges pertaining to defrauding investors and patients about the company's capabilities.

Their trials diverged when Holmes accused Balwani of manipulating her throughout their relationship, both sexually and emotionally. His attorneys deny the accusations.

Holmes was acquitted on several charges of defrauding and conspiring against people who paid for Theranos blood tests that produced misleading results and could have pointed patients toward the wrong treatment. The jury in Holmes’ trial also deadlocked on three charges.

Holmes will likely serve her sentence in a low-security prison camp in Byran, Texas, according to a judge's request.

Meanwhile, Balwani was convicted on all 12 felony counts. His lawyers argue that he deserves a far more lenient sentence of just four to 10 months in prison, preferably in home confinement.

"I am devastated by my failings," Holmes said just before her sentencing, NBC reported. "I have felt deep pain for what people went through, because I failed them ... To investors, patients, I am sorry."

“What is the pathology of fraud?" U.S. District Judge Davila said just before announcing her sentence. "Is it the inability to accept responsibility? Perhaps that [is] the cautionary tale to come from this case."

In sharp contrast to Holmes' highly publicized trial — which saw a long snaking line outside the courthouse five hours before the doors opened for the Nov. 18 sentencing — Balwani's trial had no such turnout. On Wednesday, no one was in line an hour before the courthouse opened to attend the sentencing.

Duncan Levin, a former federal prosecutor who is now a defense attorney, described Balwani's bid for a light sentence as “utterly unrealistic." Levin suspects the judge may give greater weight to the Justice Department and the probation office recommendations, which mirror the sentences those agencies sought for Holmes.

Justice Department officials have determined that both "defendants deserve the same sentence, even though Balwani was convicted for far more counts," Levin said. Since Holmes got an 11-year sentence, "it follows logically that he will get the same sentence."

Federal prosecutors also wanted the judge to order Balwani to pay $804 million in restitution to defrauded investors — the same amount sought from Holmes. Davila deferred a decision on restitution during Holmes' Nov. 18 sentencing until an unspecified future date.

Federal prosecutors cast Balwani as a ruthless, power-hungry accomplice in crimes that ripped off investors and imperiled people who received flawed results. The blood tests were to be available in a partnership with Walgreen's that Balwani helped engineer.

“Balwani presented a fake story about Theranos’ technology and financial stability day after day in meeting after meeting," the prosecutors wrote in their memo to the judge. “Balwani maintained this façade of accomplishments, after making the calculated decision that honesty would destroy Theranos."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.