Olympus HQ Raided Over $1.7bn Fraud

Olympus has officially confirmed that Japanese prosecutors have raided its offices and the home of one of the former company executives that knew about the fraud the company was found to have committed. It has come to light that Olympus had for years hidden investment losses using questionable practices and acquisitions. The prosecutors that raided the Olympus HQ are working in conjunction with police and financial regulators.

Cityam reports that a joint investigation of police and financial regulators is rare. Olympus has admitted to the questionable practices and the company is now looking for buyers and any other means to remedy the situation. Fujifilm has been tipped as one of the parties interested in buying Olympus. The Tokyo high rise raided by the prosecutors is the HQ for three Olympus subsidiaries that were purchased under the scheme to hide losses.

The investigation intensified after a panel of experts that Olympus hired to look into the allegations found that two former senior executives worked with investment bankers to cook up the scheme. The investigation also concludes that three former presidents of the firm including Tsuyoshi Kikukawa knew about the scheme. Kikukawa resigned in October after the scheme first surfaced. Olympus has confirmed the investigation in PDF statements here and here.

[via Cityam]