Extradition hearing of flash crash trader Sarao to go ahead on Friday
THE BRITISH trader accused of triggering a so-called “flash crash” in US financial markets will have his extradition hearing on Friday.
Navinder Singh Sarao, accused by the US Justice Department of causing the Dow Jones index to lose $800bn (£511bn) in a matter of minutes, faces extradition on charges that carry a maximum sentence of 380 years.
The 36-year-old, who lives with his parents in Hounslow, West London, stands accused of 22 counts of fraud and commodity manipulation.
In August, Sarao failed to have the hearing postponed. His lawyer told Westminster Magistrates Court he needed more time to obtain expert evidence about trading and how markets function.
However, judge Quentin Purdy rejected the application, ruling that expert evidence was of “no assistance” when deciding whether US charges are also offences under British law.
The crash Sarao is charged with engineering took place in May 2010 in a ruse that US authorities allege saw the trader pocket $40m.
Prosecutors say he made fake sell orders to drive down prices before buying up cheap futures and then selling them at a profit when the market stabilised.