Federal authorities have stepped up an ongoing insider trading investigation by subpoenaing Dean Foods for information regarding activist investor Carl Icahn, sports gambler William Walters and professional golfer Phil Mickelson, according to a news report.
Authorities are trying to determine whether Walters passed stock tips to Mickelson, according to anonymous sources cited by The Wall Street Journal. Clorox (CLX) received requests for information in 2011 from the Securities and Exchange Commission which, along with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, has been investigating Icahn for possibly tipping off Walters about his plans to make a takeover bid for Clorox, the article said.
Federal authorities had also been looking into the possibility that Walters had passed along inside information to Mickelson, although The New York Timesreported earlier this month that authorities had no evidence that the golfer traded any Clorox shares.
Dean Foods (DF) said in a statement to Coins2Day that the company is reviewing the matter and its policy “is to offer our full support to any government investigation.” A lawyer for Mickelson told WSJ that the golfer has done nothing wrong, is cooperating with authorities, and is focused on his preparation for upcoming golf tournaments.