Stock Picker Bragged of FBI Contact, Jury Is Told

Former San Diego stock picker Anthony Elgindy told subscribers to his online tip sheet about “my personal FBI agent” who was illegally passing him inside information, then warned them to keep it secret, a former associate testified Wednesday.

Derrick Cleveland, who is testifying for the government in Elgindy’s trial on racketeering and fraud charges in New York, read excerpts from Internet chat room logs in which subscribers discussed the agent, Jeffrey Royer.

Elgindy, 36, who also went by the name Anthony Pacific, and Royer, 41, are on trial in federal court. Royer is accused of tipping off Elgindy about companies under FBI scrutiny.

On one occasion in 2001, Cleveland said, Elgindy told the website’s administrator to “erase the log,” warning that “none of this can leave or go public. If anyone even mentions FBI on a message board, I think we’ll get in a world of trouble.”

Armed with secret information from Royer, Elgindy made insider trades and extorted money from firms that paid to stop the flow of negative news on his website, authorities claim.