Southwest
Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes’ prosecutor says fraudster’s case offers warning to Silicon Valley leaders

The prosecutor behind Elizabeth Holmes’ guilty verdict said the entrepreneur’s fall from Silicon Valley’s cover girl to a felon serves as a cautionary tale.
Former federal prosecutor John Bostic played a pivotal role in putting Holmes behind bars and is cautioning other entrepreneurs against following the lead of the Theranos founder’s disgraced career.
“The economy benefits from an active ecosystem of tech startups and investors,” Bostic, who now works as a partner at the global law firm Cooley, told Fox News Digital.
“Investors need to approach even the most hyped investments with a dose of skepticism, and founders need to be vigilant in painting an accurate picture of their companies. That goes double in highly regulated industries like life sciences.”
CONVICTED CEO FRAUDSTER ELIZABETH HOLMES SAYS LIFE IN LOCKUP IS ‘HELL’ IN FIRST PRISON INTERVIEW
Elizabeth Holmes, founder of Theranos Inc., arrives at Federal Prison Camp Bryan in Bryan, Texas, May 30, 2023. (Sergio Flores/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Holmes swindled investors out of hundreds of millions of dollars by falsely claiming her company had invented a device that could run complex medical tests with just a single drop of blood.
In November 2022, Holmes was sentenced to 11 years in prison after being convicted of fraud and conspiracy and was ordered to pay $452 million in restitution to her victims.
“There are things I would have done differently,” Holmes, 41, said in an interview with People. “I refused to plead guilty to crimes I did not commit. Theranos failed. But failure is not fraud.”
INMATES HOPE TO BEFRIEND THERANOS FOUNDER ELIZABETH HOLMES AHEAD OF HER ARRIVAL AT TEXAS PRISON
Despite her conviction, Holmes maintains she is innocent and was not influenced by greed, which Bostic said is irrelevant in the eyes of the law.
“A fraud case almost always comes down to a defendant’s intent,” Bostic said. “Even if the evidence shows that a defendant said something untrue, the prosecution’s job is only half done. They still need to prove that the defendant actually intended to deceive and cheat someone.”

Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes arrives at a federal courthouse accompanied by partner Billy Evans, in San Jose, Calif., March 17, 2023. (Reuters/Carlos Barria)
Holmes’ trial revealed that while Theranos was not a sham, her claims were.
“The jury heard from multiple investors who gave similar accounts of how the false things they heard from Holmes persuaded them to invest,” Bostic told Fox News Digital. “And, critically, former employees testified about the true situation at Theranos and what Holmes knew.”
Earlier this year, a federal appeals court upheld Holmes’s conviction, dashing her hopes of being released from prison. Holmes and former business partner Ramesh “Sunny” Balwani claimed legal errors were made during their trials after the court allowed some witness testimony but denied others.
ELIZABETH HOLMES LOSES BID TO REMAIN OUT OF PRISON DURING APPEAL

Elizabeth Holmes, founder of Theranos Inc., arrives at Federal Prison Camp Bryan in Bryan, Texas, May 30, 2023. (Sergio Flores/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
While in prison, the mother of two is permitted to visit with her partner, Billy Evans, and their two children, Holmes said. She gave birth to her oldest child shortly before her trial began and delivered her second child three months before her prison sentence began.
“I always wanted to be a mother,” Holmes told People. “I truly did not think I would ever be convicted or found guilty.”
Holmes is being held at Federal Prison Camp Byran in Bryan, Texas, and is scheduled to be released March 19, 2032. Upon release, she hopes to continue working in the healthcare and technology industries.
“It kills me to put my family through pain the way I do,” Holmes said. “But when I look back on my life, and these angels that have come into it, I can get through anything. It makes me want to fight for all of it.”
Mollie Markowitz and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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Southwest
Suzanne Simpson murder: Texas attorneys sift through evidence as husband’s case rocks affluent neighborhood

More than five months after Texas real estate agent Suzanne Simpson vanished in a wealthy area of San Antonio, attorneys are still sorting out evidence as her husband faces a murder case and her body has not been found.
Simpson, a 51-year-old mother of four, went missing Oct. 6, 2024, after reportedly fighting with her husband of 22 years in front of their house in Olmos Park in the San Antonio area. Authorities believe Brad Simpson “intentionally and knowingly caused the death” of Suzanne “on or about Sunday, Oct. 6,” records show.
Brad Simpson is charged with murder, tampering with evidence, aggravated assault and prohibited weapons possession in his wife’s disappearance and suspected death and is scheduled to appear in court Wednesday for a status hearing after it was delayed in February.
Both prosecutors and Simpson’s defense attorney said during a Feb. 12 hearing they would need more time to go through discovery in the case. Prosecutors were still sifting through data and expecting more evidence from the Texas Rangers, according to the San Antonio Report.
SUZANNE SIMPSON MURDER CASE: TEXAS DEFENSE FOR MISSING REALTOR’S HUSBAND LOOKING FOR HOLES IN EVIDENCE TROVE
The night of the fight and Suzanne’s disappearance, Oct. 6, the Simpsons and their 5-year-old daughter attended a party at The Argyle club. (Olmos Park Police/ Kendall County Sheriff’s Office)
On Oct. 6, the night of the fight and Suzanne’s disappearance, the Simpsons and their 5-year-old daughter attended a party at The Argyle club, an exclusive, ritzy club in Alamo Heights. Bystanders witnessed the couple having a “verbal altercation” while at the party, according to an arrest affidavit.
Around 8:30 p.m., Suzanne Simpson and her daughter left the party and went to the H-E-B grocery store in San Antonio from 8:40 p.m. to 8:51 p.m., according to surveillance footage obtained by police. They arrived at their house soon after, documents show.
Later that evening, Suzanne phoned a family friend to say she was stopping by. She also called her mother to tell her Brad assaulted her, injuring her arm, back and neck, according to court records. She arrived at the family friend’s house at 9:25 p.m. Around 10 p.m., the family friend’s neighbor reported seeing Brad and Suzanne arguing loudly and “physically struggling” in front of his house.
SUZANNE SIMPSON’S DNA FOUND ON MURDER SUSPECT HUSBAND’S SAW THAT CAN CUT METAL

The Argyle club in San Antonio is where Suzanne and Brad Simpson attended a party the night Suzanne disappeared. (Kat Ramirez for Fox News Digital)
The neighbor observed Suzanne “attempting to get away from Mr. Simpson’s grasp as he tried to pull her downwards.” The neighbor also observed Brad chasing after his wife and trying to grab her, according to documents. The neighbor later heard screams coming from the wooded area across from his home.
About one hour after witnessing Suzanne and Brad Simpson fighting in front of his home, the same neighbor saw Brad’s truck leave the area and then return about an hour later.
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Brad Simpson appears in court for a pretrial hearing in Bexar County, Texas. Thursday, Dec. 19, 2024. (Kat Ramirez for Fox News Digital)
The next morning, on Oct. 7, surveillance footage from a San Antonio H-E-B grocery store captured Brad and his truck, which contained a large ice chest.
Later that morning, he bought food at a drive-thru in Kendall County, Texas, and camera footage captured three white trash bags, a heavy-duty trash can, an ice chest and a “large bulky item wrapped and secured in a blue tarp” that was held down by a firewood rack in the back of Brad’s truck, according to the affidavit.
Shortly after the drive-thru, Brad was allegedly seen purchasing two bags of cement, a construction bucket, a box of heavy-duty trash bags, Clorox disinfectant spray and insect repellent with cash at a nearby Home Depot, police learned through cellphone data, surveillance footage and a Home Depot receipt.

A Home Depot in Boerne, Texas, Nov. 13, 2024. According to an affidavit, Brad Simpson’s truck was observed here Oct. 7, 2024, and he bought Quikrete cement, trash bags, Clorox and insect repellent around the same time his wife, Suzanne Simpson, disappeared under suspicious circumstances. (Kat Ramirez for Fox News Digital)
Prior to his purchase, Brad asked an unknown male in the parking lot for directions to the nearest dump in Boerne. His cellphone was apparently turned off at the time.
At a gas station that same morning, surveillance footage captured Brad’s truck, which was missing the white trash bags, but the blue tarp, firewood rack and trash can were still present.
HUSBAND CHARGED WITH MURDER OF REAL ESTATE AGENT SUZANNE SIMPSON SHOWED ‘NO EMOTION’ AFTER HER DISAPPEARANCE: DOCS

A Valero Stripes gas station in Boerne, Texas, Nov. 13, 2024. Brad Simpson was observed here Oct. 7, 2024, after leaving a local waste center around the time his wife, Suzanne Simpson, disappeared under suspicious circumstances. (Kat Ramirez for Fox News Digital)
After picking up his daughter from school in the afternoon, Brad was spotted on another surveillance camera “washing and cleaning the drive front (sic) side and the rear-left passenger side” of his truck at a car wash back in San Antonio.
Suzanne’s friend reported her missing the evening of Oct. 7. When police contacted Brad about his wife’s disappearance, he allegedly told them he had not seen her since Oct. 6, around 11 p.m.
MISSING SUZANNE SIMPSON’S DAUGHTER SAID FATHER ‘TOOK MY MOTHER’S LIFE’ AFTER REAL ESTATE AGENT’S DISAPPEARANCE

The home of Suzanne and Brad Simpson in San Antonio, Texas, Nov. 12, 2024. (Kat Ramirez for Fox News Digital)
On Oct. 8, Brad exchanged text messages with his longtime friend and business partner, James “Val” Cotter, who is also charged in the case.
“If you’re in Bandera, can you haul a– to meet me at your house?” Simpson allegedly texted Cotter. “I don’t have much time.”
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Kendall County Solid Waste in Boerne, Texas, Nov. 13, 2024. Brad Simpson’s truck was observed here Oct. 7, 2024, around the time his wife, Suzanne Simpson, disappeared. (Kat Ramirez for Fox News Digital)
In a later text to Brad, Cotter wrote, “Get over here!! I won’t tell anyone” and “You’re my brother.”
Cotter was charged with tampering with evidence with the intent to impair an investigation and possession of prohibited weapons in Suzanne’s disappearance. He posted bond in November 2024.
SUZANNE SIMPSON’S HUSBAND WENT TO DUMP SITE, HOME DEPOT, CAR WASH HOURS AFTER REAL ESTATE AGENT’S DISAPPEARANCE: DOCS

According to Bexar County Court records, James Valle Cotter, 65, was charged with tampering or fabricating physical evidence with intent to impair an investigation. (Bexar County Jail)
Authorities arrested Brad Oct. 9, 2024, and Cotter on Oct. 21, 2024.
On Oct. 9, Texas Rangers executed a search warrant on Brad’s property in Bandera County, where they found a ground-level burn site with a burnt laptop and multiple cellular devices. They also searched his truck and identified stains that tested “presumtively positive for blood,” which were tested and determined to be Brad’s blood.
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Brad Simpson appears in court for a pretrial hearing in Bexar County, Texas Thursday, Dec. 19, 2024. (Kat Ramirez for Fox News Digital)
In December, Bexar County Criminal District Attorney Joe Gonzales announced via press release that Brad had “concealed” a “reciprocating saw” two days after Suzanne’s disappearance, and authorities informed family members that Suzanne’s DNA had been identified on the saw.
Brad remains in Bexar County’s jail with bonds totaling $3 million and a federal hold by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives for the weapons charge. His attorney could not be reached for comment.
Fox News Digital’s Mollie Markowitz contributed to this report.
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Los Angeles, Ca
Wilshire Boulevard to close for 3 weeks for LA Metro station construction

A four-block section of Wilshire Boulevard in Beverly Hills will be closed for three weeks, with detours in place, as part of ongoing LA Metro construction on the D Line Extension.
The full closure between El Camino Drive and Crescent Drive will run from March 17 to April 7 to allow crews to complete deck removal and roadway restoration for the Wilshire/Rodeo Station, which is currently under construction.
Work will take place 24 hours a day, seven days a week, except during holidays and regional events, LA Metro officials said.
The construction will also impact Metro bus routes.
Starting March 17, Metro Lines 20 and 720 will detour via Santa Monica Boulevard, Burton Way, and San Vicente Boulevard, with temporary stops along the route. Line 617 will reroute via Santa Monica Boulevard, Century Park East, and Olympic Boulevard, with a temporary stop at Santa Monica and Wilshire.
These detours will remain in place through April 7.
The Wilshire/Rodeo Station is part of the D Line, formerly the Purple Line, extension, which will connect downtown Los Angeles to Westwood in about 25 minutes. The project is being built in three sections, with the first phase from Wilshire/Western to Wilshire/La Cienega set to open this year. The second phase, including Wilshire/Rodeo, is expected to be completed in 2026.
For more information on the project and traffic detours, visit beverlyhills.org/purpleline.
Los Angeles, Ca
Gunman wanted for shooting through motel room wall in San Bernardino County

Authorities are searching for a suspect who shot through the wall of a motel room in San Bernardino County.
The shooting occurred Thursday at Motel 6 on the 72500 block of Twentynine Palms Highway in Twentynine Palms, according to the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department.
The victims, a 77-year-old man and an 81-year-old woman, were visiting from San Diego and staying at the property.
The suspect, identified as Royce Roche, was in the room next door when he allegedly fired his gun. The bullet pierced through an adjoining wall and into the victims’ room.
Surveillance video showed Roche leaving the motel with a towel wrapped around his left hand. He fled the scene before deputies arrived.
Roche is currently wanted out of Colorado for a probation violation. His vehicle is a white 2003 Chevrolet Trailblazer with California license plate 9NJB143.
“He is likely armed with a firearm and should be considered armed and dangerous,” deputies said.
Neither the victims nor anyone else on the property were injured during the shooting, deputies said.
Anyone who may have seen Roche or knows his whereabouts is urged to call SBSD’s Morongo Basin Station at 760-366-4175. Anonymous tips can be provided to We-Tip at 1-800-782-7463 or online at wetip.com.
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