Accused hedge-fund mogul doesn't testify

A one-time billionaire who is the lead defendant in the largest hedge fund insider trading case ever didn't take the stand to tell his side of the story, and closing arguments in his trial were set for Wednesday.

Defense attorney John Dowd announced Monday that he was finished calling witnesses after his weeklong presentation on behalf of Raj Rajaratnam, a hedge fund founder who became one of the most well-known names on Wall Street in the last decade.

Prosecutors called an FBI agent back to the witness stand and played another audio tape of a phone conversation, one of dozens played for the jury over the past seven weeks as they try to convince the panel that Rajaratnam made $68 million illegally.

Rajaratnam's lawyers called a number of witnesses to rebut the claims and support their argument that Rajaratnam traded only on information that was publicly available.

Among the witnesses was Geoffrey Canada, president of the Harlem Children's Zone and a New York education advocate featured in the documentary "Waiting for Superman." Canada, who signed Rajaratnam's $100-million bond to help secure his release after his October 2009 arrest, said Rajaratnam was "a dear friend of mine."

U.S. District Judge Richard J. Holwell scheduled closing arguments for Wednesday morning.

Rajaratnam founded the Galleon Group of hedge funds a decade ago, but the funds were closed after his arrest. He has pleaded not guilty to conspiracy and securities fraud charges.

Since his arrest, more than two dozen other traders and employees of public companies have been charged in a crackdown by federal authorities on insider trading. Already, 19 have pleaded guilty.