Mark Cupo, former director of accounting and reporting at Sanofi-Aventis, pleaded guilty to taking part in an insider trading ring involving executives from three pharmaceutical companies. The scheme, which operated from 2007 to 2012, involved the participants sharing nonpublic financial information about pending mergers and acquisitions, company earnings reports, and decisions on regulatory applications. Over the five-year period, the conspirators collectively reaped more than $1.4 million in illicit profits from the scheme. Cupo, who cooperated with the government, was sentenced to 16 months in prison and ordered to pay a $700 special assessment. See related Sanofi-Aventis instance, “SEC v. Cupo (Insider Trading)”.