A hedge fund manager who handled debt purchases at the center of a trial over the bankruptcy of LightSquared said yesterday he did not recall whether Dish Network Corp Chairman Charles Ergen was buying the debt to influence the bankruptcy, Reuters reported yesterday. Stephen Ketchum, the head of Sound Point Capital, also testified that he could not recall how badly Ergen wanted the debt of the wireless communications company, apparently contradicting an earlier deposition and drawing a reminder from the judge that he was under oath. Ergen's motivation for buying LightSquared's debt is central to the trial, which is taking place in the U.S. bankruptcy court in Manhattan. LightSquared and its owner, Harbinger Capital Partners, accuse Ergen of improperly buying the debt as a way for Dish to take control of LightSquared's wireless broadband rights. Ergen has said he was buying the debt for his own purposes.
