Olympus scandal whistleblower Michael Woodford (pictured) has welcomed the arrests of seven men overnight, including a former Olympus president, as vindication for four months of ‘hell’.
NEWS UPDATE: OLYMPUS ISSUES STATEMENT
‘After going to hell and back, this is a day to remember. No other words are necessary,’ said Woodford, who was instrumental in exposing a £1.1 billion accounting cover-up at the historic camera maker.
Ex-Olympus president Tsuyoshi Kikukawa (pictured below, with Woodford) and former executive vice-president Hisashi Mori were among the top officials arrested by police and prosecutors.
Woodford was sensationally sacked last October after accusing fellow board members of wrongdoing, which Olympus later admitted after strenuously denying that it had cooked the books.
Hideo Yamada, a former Olympus auditor, was also among those arrested in connection with a suspected breach of the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act.
The four others named by officials include ex-bankers Akio Nakagawa and Nobumasa Yokoo.
Investigations into the scandal are ongoing. The UK’s Serious Fraud Office and the FBI in the United States have launched separate probes into the Olympus affair which led the firm’s share price to plummet by up to around 80%.
OLYMPUS TOKYO ISSUES STATEMENT
[Picture credit: C Cheesman]
BACKGROUND ARTICLES
AP INTERVIEW WITH FIRED CEO MICHAEL WOODFORD
Olympus HQ raided by prosecutors
Olympus denies camera division shake-up threat
Sacked Olympus boss outlines key to future
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
Olympus not aware of ‘FBI’ probe
PICTURE: Woodford with Olympus chairman Tsuyoshi Kikukawa, as pictured in the company’s annual report last year, published on the company’s website
