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The
Department of Justice recommendation, made in a court filing,
came as Holmes prepares to be sentenced next week.
"Considering the extensiveness of Holmes' fraud... the
sentencing of 180 months' imprisonment would reflect the
seriousness of the offenses, provide for just punishment for the
offenses, and deter Holmes and others," the prosecutors said.
Holmes earlier urged U.S. District Judge Edward Davila in San
Jose, California not to send her to prison.
A jury convicted the 38-year-old on four counts of wire fraud
and conspiracy in January. Each count carries a maximum 20-year
prison term. Any sentence would likely be served concurrently.
Prosecutors said she lied to investors from 2010 to 2015 by
promising Theranos Inc's technology could run many tests on one
drop of blood from a finger prick.
Holmes had pleaded not guilty to charges that she lied about
Theranos, including that its technology could detect diseases
with a few drops of blood, and said the firm's lab directors
were in charge of test quality.
On Monday, Davila rejected her requests for a new trial,
including over a claim that a key prosecution witness visited
her at home and made statements that undermined his testimony.
Holmes founded Theranos in 2003 at the age of 19. The company
was once valued at $9 billion, and Forbes magazine estimated
Holmes' net worth at $4.5 billion in 2015.
Theranos collapsed after the Wall Street Journal published a
series of articles, starting in 2015, that suggested its devices
were flawed and inaccurate.
(Reporting by Akriti Sharma in Bengaluru and Kanishka Singh in
Washington; Editing by Pravin Char)
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