The United States Attorney's Office

BROADCOM CO-FOUNDER PLEADS GUILTY TO MAKING FALSE STATEMENT TO THE SEC IN BACKDATING INVESTIGATION

SANTA ANA, Calif. – Dr. Henry Samueli, the co-founder and former chief technical officer of Broadcom, Inc., pleaded guilty today to making a false statement in testimony before the Securities and Exchange Commission relating to that agency’s investigation into options backdating at the Irvine-based technology company.

Samueli, 53, of Carona Del Mar, appeared this afternoon before United States District Judge Cormac J. Carney and pleaded guilty to a felony count pursuant to a plea agreement with the government.

Samueli admitted making a false statement to the SEC during a deposition he gave on May 25, 2007.  In that testimony, Samueli stated that he was not involved in the process of granting options to Broadcom’s highest-ranking officers, known as “Section 16" officers. In entering his guilty plea, Samueli admitted that this statement was false because he had been involved in the process of granting options to Broadcom’s Section 16 officers in January 2002. Specifically, Samueli admitted that he was involved in the process of determining in January 2002 that Broadcom should “go with” the October 19, 2001 stock price for the options granted to those officers.

Dr. Samueli’s plea agreement calls for a sentence of five years probation, a $250,000 criminal fine, and the payment of $12 million to the United States for making a false statement to the SEC. Judge Carney is scheduled to sentence Samueli on August 18.

Earlier this month, Dr. Henry T. Nicholas III, Broadcom’s former chief executive officer and co-founder, and William Ruehle, the former chief financial officer, were named in an indictment that alleges a stock-option backdating scheme (see: http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/cac/pressroom/pr2008/078.html). Nicholas and Ruehle have pleaded not guilty in that case.

Nancy Tullos, the former executive vice president of Human Resources at Broadcom, previously pleaded guilty to obstruction of justice charges and is cooperating in the case (see: http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/cac/pressroom/pr2007/151.html).

This case is a result of an ongoing investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The Securities and Exchange Commission provided assistance.

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