Theranos con artist Elizabeth Holmes has fired back after prosecutors claimed she tried to flee the country by buying a one-way ticket to Mexico shortly after her conviction last year.
In a court filing filed Monday, Holmes’ legal team accused prosecutors of “reckless and false” misrepresentation in court last week in their motion against her release, which is pending appeal.
Holmes, 38, is scheduled to report to federal prison on April 27 to serve an 11-year sentence but is seeking bail as she appeals her January 2022 conviction for investing in her fake medical testing technology has deceived.
Prosecutors strongly opposed an extension of her bail last week in a motion that included the dramatic allegation that Holmes attempted to escape by booking a flight to Mexico that departed weeks after her conviction by a jury.
In response, Holmes’ lawyers insisted her partner, Billy Evans, had booked the flight to the luxury resort of Puerto Vallarta before her sentencing, and said the couple planned to attend a friend’s wedding if she had been acquitted.
After prosecutors claimed she tried to flee, Holmes’ attorneys insisted her partner Billy Evans booked the flight to the luxury resort of Puerto Vallarta before her sentencing
A beach like Puerto Vallarta is in a file photo. Holmes had reserved a flight to the luxury resort town for late January 2022 but said she only intended to fly if she was acquitted
The defense motion alleges that the prosecutors in their case file “recklessly and falsely accused Ms. Holmes and her partner of attempted escape and submitted incomplete and demonstrably inaccurate allegations of fact in support of those allegations.”
Holmes’ team asked the court to strike out certain parts of the government’s motion as factually incorrect.
Specifically, they dispute the claim that Evans departed on the flight to Mexico on January 26, 2022 and did not return to the United States for six weeks while flying back from Cape Town, South Africa.
However, Evans insisted in court documents that he returned to the United States on January 30, took several domestic flights and then flew to Cape Town on a separate trip in late February.
To support his claim, Evans produced receipts for electronic tolls and plane tickets, as well as a photo showing him at home in California on February 2 playing with the young son he shares with Holmes.
Evans, 29, is the heir to a family business that operates luxury hotels in San Diego. He reportedly secretly married Holmes in 2019 and stood by her throughout her criminal case and sentencing.
Evans denied the government’s claims and produced receipts for electronic tolls and airline tickets, as well as a photo (above) showing him at home in California on February 2, playing with the infant son he shares with Holmes
Evans, 29, is the heir to a family business that operates luxury hotels in San Diego. He reportedly secretly married Holmes in 2019 and stood by her throughout her criminal case
The couple had their first child in July 2021 and Holmes is currently pregnant with their second child. Despite reports that they are married, court records refer to Evans as her “fiancé and partner” rather than her husband.
In their filing last week, prosecutors claimed that Holmes “continues to show no remorse to her victims,” including the investors whose roughly $900 million in investments in Theranos went up in smoke when the company’s deception was exposed.
Holmes’ defense team also provided an email from Assistant US Attorney Jeffrey Benjamin Schenk, who appeared to dismiss concerns about the flight after her legal team confirmed the reservation had been canceled.
“Thank you again for the background information, the reassurance, and for addressing this situation quickly,” Schenk wrote in the Jan. 24, 2022 email.
“I don’t think we need to discuss this any further, but I’ll definitely be in touch if that changes and you’re welcome to reach out if you disagree,” he added.
A hearing on the new motions is scheduled for March 17 in federal court in San Diego.
Holmes’ defense team also provided an email from Assistant US Attorney Jeffrey Benjamin Schenk in which he appeared to dismiss concerns about the Mexico flight
A jury convicted Holmes, who served as Theranos CEO during the company’s turbulent 15-year history, on three counts of wire fraud and one count of conspiracy to commit fraud
In November, US District Judge Edward Davila sentenced Holmes to 11 years in federal prison and delayed the start of her sentence until April 27 because of her pregnancy.
She is appealing the conviction and verdict in the US Circuit Court of Appeals, asking for a new trial and has asked to remain at liberty pending a decision on her appeal.
In the filing, Holmes’ attorneys said: “This was a complex, hard-fought trial spanning several months, with numerous witnesses and hundreds of exhibits, which resulted in a split verdict. The file is teeming with opposition problems.’
Holmes’ filing also alleged that the judge made errors, which included allowing the jury to hear about regulatory action against Theranos and the company voiding all test results on its “Edison” machines.
A jury convicted Holmes, who was CEO during the company’s turbulent 15-year history, after seven days of deliberation on three counts of wire fraud and one count of conspiracy to commit fraud.
She was acquitted on four other counts of fraud and conspiracy alleging she also deceived patients who paid for Theranos blood tests.
In November, Judge Davila Holmes recommended serving her sentence in a minimum security detention center in Texas.
The prison camp recommended by the judge is in Bryan, Texas, about 100 miles north of Houston, where Holmes attended high school. It is intended for female inmates and currently houses about 540 inmates.
Federal Bureau of Prisons officials make the final decision on allocating inmates, but often consider the court’s recommendation.