He first bought the tiny company’s stock after bunking down in its chief executive’s six-bedroom home.

He added to his holdings soon after the rollout of a new product that the company hinted could be a cure for Alzheimer’s disease.

As the stock reached a 52-week high last year, he sold part of his portfolio for a $4,000 profit.

Kenneth T. Cuccinelli II, Virginia’s attorney general, said that the timing of his ownership of Star Scientific shares reflected nothing more than his own investment analysis.

Star Scientific and its chief executive have been at the center of an exploding political drama in Virginia as state and federal investigators look into lavish gifts that the executive, Jonnie R. Williams Sr., gave Gov. Bob McDonnell.