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 Frank Perkins Hixon Jr., a former senior manager at the bank,
pleaded guilty to six criminal counts at a hearing in the U.S.
district court in Manhattan.
The defendant was accused in February of using inside information to
arrange trades in the stock of Evercore's parent and two other
companies, through accounts held by Hixon's ex-girlfriend and his
father.
The other two companies besides Evercore Partners Inc were Westway
Group, which merged last year with EQT Infrastructure II, and
Titanium Metals Corp, which was purchased last year by Precision
Castparts Corp.
Authorities said the suspect trades occurred in accounts held by the
mother of Hixon's young child in Austin, Texas and a close relative
in Johns Creek, Georgia.
In a related civil lawsuit, the U.S. Securities and Exchange
Commission said the accounts belonged to Destiny Wind Robinson,
Hixon's former girlfriend, and Frank Hixon Sr., his father.
Hixon pleaded guilty to six counts including securities fraud,
securities fraud in connection with a tender offer and making a
false statement.
According to a plea agreement, Hixon could face 46 months to 57
months in prison under recommended federal guidelines, and has
agreed to forfeit the $710,000 earned in the scheme. Sentencing is
scheduled for August 1.
Hixon, who is married, told authorities he ended his relationship
with Robinson in 2009, about the time the child was born, according
to court documents.
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The SEC's lawsuit said that text messages between the two had
suggested the insider trading was at least partly intended to
support their child.
"I am sorry these actions affected my family and my friends," Hixon
said in court.
George Sard, an Evercore spokesman, said the company had immediately
reported suspicious trading linked to Hixon after discovering it
last year, and has cooperated with authorities.
"The acts of one rogue employee do not define our firm," he said.
The criminal case is U.S. v. Hixon, U.S. District Court, Southern
District of New York, No. 14-mj-0341. The civil case is U.S.
Securities and Exchange Commission v. Hixon, U.S. District Court,
Western District of Texas, No. 14-158.
(Reporting by Nate Raymond in New York;
editing by Steve Orlofsky)
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