Former hedge fund manager commited fraud-court

BOSTON, Sept 24 (Reuters) - Former hedge fund manager Michael Lauer, who stole money from Morgan Stanley and other investors to buy a plane and race car, was convicted of having committed fraud in a U.S. court, regulators said on Wednesday.

Lauer committed "egregious, pervasive, premeditated" fraud that "resulted in the loss of hundreds of millions of dollars in investors' funds," Kenneth Marra, U.S. District Judge for the Southern District of Florida ruled.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission sued Lauer, who ran hedge funds Lancer Management Group and Lancer Management Group II, in 2003.

The court found that Lauer lied about the hedge funds' valuations, manipulated prices in seven securities, lied to investors about his holdings in fake portfolio statements and falsely represented his holdings in newsletters.

Hedge funds are loosely regulated portfolios that have become hugely popular with institutional investors who helped assets nearly double to $1.9 trillion in the last three years.

Lauer, who also faces criminal charges for the same matter, could not be reached for comment.

The judge did not determine a financial penalty. (Reporting by Svea Herbst-Bayliss, editing by Leslie Gevirtz)