Former US Congressman Stephen Buyer, a Republican from Indiana, was granted a presidential pardon by Donald Trump for his involvement in insider trading leading to a 22-month jail sentence in 2023. Buyer, a former T-Mobile US consultant, engaged in securities fraud prior to a $23 billion merger with Sprint in 2018. The White House announcement highlighted Buyer’s distinguished service as a US Army judge advocate general and member of Congress without specifying a reason for the pardon.
Trump’s decision to pardon Buyer was based on the advice and recommendation of 52 current and former US Senate and House members. This move is part of a series of controversial pardons by Trump, including the release of former Honduras President Juan Orlando Hernández and Binance founder Changpeng Zhao.
Buyer, who served in Congress from 1993 to 2011, was convicted in March 2023 on securities fraud charges related to illegal trades based on insider information about the 2018 merger talks between T-Mobile and Sprint. Prosecutors revealed that Buyer profited from these trades and others involving Navigant Consulting Inc. before its acquisition by Guidehouse in 2019. Despite facing a three-year prison sentence sought by prosecutors, Buyer maintained his innocence during trial and was denied an appeal by the US Supreme Court in May of the same year.