President Donald Trump has issued a pardon for former Representative Stephen Buyer, who was convicted on four counts of securities fraud in 2023 related to an insider trading scheme. Buyer, a Republican from Indiana, served nearly two years in prison after making illegal stock trades based on information he acquired while consulting for T-Mobile U.S. prior to the 2018 Sprint merger. He was also ordered to pay over $350,000 in forfeiture and a $10,000 fine.
The pardon, described as 'full, complete, and unconditional,' was announced by the White House and dated Thursday. It cited Buyer's military service as a U.S. Army judge advocate general and his tenure in the House of Representatives as factors in the decision. The pardon was reportedly based on recommendations from 53 current and former members of Congress.
A letter from April 2025, signed by several former congressional Republicans, claimed that Buyer was 'targeted by the deep state' due to his role as a House prosecutor during the impeachment of former President Bill Clinton in 1998. The letter suggested that Buyer, like Trump, was a victim of politically motivated legal actions.
Five current House Republicans also expressed support for the pardon, stating that it would bring justice. Buyer, who served in the House from 1993 to 2011 before becoming a corporate consultant, maintains his innocence, describing his imprisonment as 'horrific' and asserting that the pardon rectifies a politically motivated prosecution.
During his trial, prosecutors presented evidence that Buyer had purchased Sprint stock using nonpublic information obtained through his consulting work, resulting in profits exceeding $100,000. They also noted that he traded ahead of a public announcement regarding his client, Guidehouse's acquisition of Navigant Consulting, which generated approximately $227,000 in profits.
