Stephanie A. Weiss
The US Securities and Exchange Commission and US Attorney's Office are investigating Semiconductor Laser International Corp. to determine whether the company has violated securities laws.
On Nov. 23, Semiconductor Laser released its financial report for the quarter ending Sept. 31, 1998. In that report, the company acknowledged that since April the Securities and Exchange Commission has been requesting information from the company, and that in June the commission began a formal investigation of possible securities law violations. As part of the investigation, the company and some current and former directors and officers have given the commission some documents. The company would not speculate on the specific focus of this investigation.
The quarterly report also stated that the company learned in August that the US Attorney's Office in the Southern District of New York is investigating whether the company's public disclosures have violated any securities laws. The company has responded to grand jury subpoenas seeking information on this issue. "Management believes that there are meritorious defenses to the issues raised in this investigation and intends to defend the matter vigorously," the financial report said.
Manufacturing continues
Geoffrey T. Burnham, Semiconductor Laser's president, could not be reached for comment on the investigations. However, the quarterly financial report indicates that the investigations have not affected the company's manufacture of aluminum-free diode lasers.
In fact, the company reported more than $600,000 in sales for the quarter, compared with just over $100,000 for the same period in 1997. The company anticipates that sales will be slightly slower in the next two quarters because of delays from a major supplier.