Billionaire Henry Nicholas, 48, former chief-executive of the California-based firm, denied all 21 charges revealed in two indictments earlier this month relating to the stock fraud and drugs cases.Justice officials say Nicholas and a co-defendant, former Broadcom chief financial officer William Ruehle, 66, engaged in a stocks back-dating scheme that led to a 2.2 billion dollar write-down in profits.Ruehle also pleaded not guilty to the charges.Prosecutors have described the 1995-2005 stock fraud as one of the largest of its kind in US history."Nicholas and Ruehle were involved in a wide-ranging fraud that resulted in the largest financial restatement related to options backdating in the United States," US Attorney Thomas O'Brien said earlier this month.A separate indictment alleges that Nicholas alone maintained a supply of drugs -- including ecstasy and cocaine -- for use and distribution.
The indictment alleges Nicholas used ecstasy to spike the drinks of industry executives and employees of Broadcom customers.
The charges say that in one incident, Nicholas and others smoked so much marijuana during a flight on a private jet travelling from California to Las Vegas that the pilot was required to put on an oxygen mask.Nicholas was included in Forbes magazine's list of the 400 richest Americans last year, with his worth estimated at 2.3 billion dollars.
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