The founder of U.S. hedge fund firm Barai Capital Management has been drawn into the government's insider trading probe that involves expert network firms, the Wall Street Journal said, citing people familiar with the matter.

Samir Barai, the founder of Barai Capital, has been named co-conspirator in the investigation that examines whether hedge funds and other investors traded on inside information received from corporate employees freelancing as consultants for expert network firms, the Journal said.

However, prosecutors have not disclosed any charges of wrongdoing against Barai in the ongoing investigation, the paper said.

Barai Capital was raided by the Federal Bureau of Investigation agents in November, the newspaper said, citing people familiar with the matter.

Barai did not return calls for comment, the Journal said. Barai Capital could not immediately be reached for comment by Reuters outside regular U.S. business hours.

(Reporting by Sakthi Prasad in Bangalore; Editing by Dhara Ranasinghe)

Insider trading