Autonomy Founder Mike Lynch Acquitted of Fraud in Landmark Case

Mike Lynch, the founder of Autonomy, was acquitted of fraud by a San Francisco jury. This marks a significant victory for Lynch, who faced legal challenges following the troubled sale of his company to Hewlett-Packard for $11 billion in 2011. The jury cleared Lynch of all 15 charges related to conspiracy and wire fraud.

(Adds details and background in paragraphs 2-3) June 6 (Reuters) -

Autonomy founder Mike Lynch was acquitted of fraud on Thursday by a jury in San Francisco, a major win for the entrepreneur who has been dogged by legal problems since the disastrous sale of his company to Hewlett-Packard (HP) for $11 billion in 2011. Representatives for Lynch and U.S. prosecutors said Lynch was acquitted on all 15 charges -- one count of conspiracy, and 14 counts of wire fraud, each connected to specific transactions or communications.

The Autonomy sale was one of the biggest British tech deals at the time but quickly went sour, with HP writing down Autonomy's value by $8.8 billion within a year.