Picture: Michael Woodford, who gave AP an exclusive hour-long interview this afternoon Photo credit: Chris Cheesman
READ MORE FROM THE INTERVIEW HERE
EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: FBI and United States Department of Justice officials have called former Olympus CEO Michael Woodford (pictured above) for fresh meetings to discuss the ongoing scandal engulfing the firm.
In a candid and wide-ranging interview with Amateur Photographer (AP) magazine, Michael Woodford MBE said he plans to visit the United States again shortly, and made clear he is going following requests made to him by US authorities.
?I have met with the FBI and I have met with the Department of Justice. I am going out again. They have asked to meet with me and I am meeting [them] again at their request,? Woodford told AP this afternoon.
Woodford was sacked last month after quizzing colleagues over high fees paid to financial advisers – a controversy that escalated when Olympus admitted it had been hiding accounting losses since the 1990s.
‘These are profound issues in relation to the corporation’s future,’ Woodford added, in an interview which took place in the UK.
The crisis has prompted the intervention of the Japanese Prime Minister and raised wider concerns about corporate governance in Japan.
Among the authorities investigating the scandal is the UK?s Serious Fraud Office which yesterday confirmed that it has launched a formal inquiry.
Next week Woodford is set to meet the Tokyo Metropolitan Police, the Tokyo Prosecutor’s Office and Japan?s Securities and Exchange Surveillance Commission.
This will be the first time he has visited Japan since he was dismissed on 14 October.
? Keep an eye on this website over coming days for more of AP?s exclusive interview with Michael Woodford
BACKGROUND ARTICLES
Plot thickens as Olympus fires vice president
We have lost customers’ trust, says Olympus president
Olympus is a good business, says sacked CEO
Olympus crisis: Japan PM enters fray
