Ex-Immucor director settles insider-trading charges

A former director at Immucor Inc., a maker of blood-testing equipment, has settled allegations of insider trading, the Securities and Exchange Commission announced Monday.

Mark Kishel, 59 years old, of Roswell, Ga., settled without admitting or denying the SEC's charges contained in a civil lawsuit filed in federal court in Georgia last week. He agreed to pay about $30,000 of unrealized profits, interest, and penalties.

Immucor shares gained nearly 20 percent in a single day in April 2004, after the Norcross, Ga.-based company announced the Food and Drug Administration had approved its Galileo blood-analysis system for sale in the United States.

Corporate executives alerted the board to the prospect in advance, and Kishel bought Immucor stock almost immediately afterward, according to the SEC.

"He left the boardroom and within hours, made the trade," said Stephen Donahue, an assistant director for enforcement in the SEC's Atlanta office.

Spokesmen for Kishel and Immucor couldn't immediately be reached for comment.