Ackman Says Herbalife Ltd. Insiders Hiring Criminal Attorneys

Herbalife

's managers are hiring personal criminal defense attorneys at "are at risk of going to jail," activist investor William Ackman said Monday. The head of Pershing Square Capital Management extended his long-running short campaign against the multi-level marketing company in a widely covered talk at a New York investor conference. In a press release also Monday, Herbalife countered that there is "simply no truth to Bill Ackman's statements." The Los Angeles-based company called the speech "just another stunt in his campaign." Ackman has made negative statements about Herbalife repeatedly since December 2012, when he disclosed a $1 billion short position in the company's shares. Herbalife on Monday noted unconfirmed reports of last month that the Federal Bureau of Investigation is looking at whether Ackman may have illegally sought to manipulate Herbalife's share price. Herbalife has previously disclosed investigations of its business practices by investigation by the Federal Trade Commission, the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Department of Justice. Herbalife changed hands recently at $42.97, up $0.13 cents.