Stockbroker Who Was Key Figure in GameStop Saga Hit With Federal Fraud Charges

Famed short seller and Citron Research founder Andrew Left is being charged with fraud. Federal prosecutors are accusing him of making exaggerated or misleading public statements about stocks to turn a quick illegal profit.

Left, 54, formerly of Beverly Hills but who now resides in Boca Raton, Florida, is charged with one count of engaging in a securities fraud scheme, 17 counts of securities fraud, and one count of making false statements to federal investigators, United States Attorney Martin Estrada for California's Central District announced Friday.

Left, who has appeared in several documentaries about the GameStop saga, is expected to be arraigned in the coming weeks in United States District Court in Little Tokyo, prosecutors say.

“This defendant allegedly used his platform as a securities commentator to manipulate the markets and enrich himself in the process,” Estrada said. “The integrity of our securities markets is essential to the health of our financial system, and those who undermine that integrity imperil the savings of hard-working people. My office’s Corporate and Securities Fraud Strike Force will continue to protect the public by rooting out malfeasance by corporate insiders who believe they are above the law.”

According to the indictment unsealed this week, Left is a securities analyst, trader, and frequent guest commentator on business cable news channels such as CNBC, Fox Business and Bloomberg Television.

Using Citron’s online platform, Left commented on publicly traded companies and asserted that the market incorrectly valued the companies’ stock, advocating that the current price was too high or too low. Left’s recommendations often included an explicit or implicit representation about Citron’s trading position and a “target price,” which he represented as his own view of the security’s true future value.

"Left used his social media following and public platform to earn at least $16 million in quick profits by fraudulently manipulating the stock market from at least March 2018 to October 2023," according to the indictment.  "To maintain the illusion of Citron’s independence and the credibility of its commentary, Left allegedly concealed Citron’s financial relationships with hedge funds."

Not only did he lie about his relationship to hedge funds to federal investigators, according to the indictment, he bragged about shorting stocks in text messages recovered during the probe into Citron Research. "I feel like I want blood," he wrote in one text cited in the indictment. "Made some money back today on the short side."

During the GameStop short, Left lost 100 percent of his investment.