Trouble at Olympus: SFO brings criminal charges against tech company
The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) has charged camera and medical equipment company Olympus with offences of "making a statement to an auditor which was misleading, false or deceptive".
The alleged offences are said to have taken place between April 2010 and March 2011 and arose from a global fraud case for which Olympus Corporation was prosecuted in Japan.
Over £1bn of losses were concealed in the 93 year old company's investment portfolio. Olympus as well as three former executives Tsuyoshi Kikukawa, Hideo Yamada and Hishashi Mori were sentenced in July 2013.
The troubles at the firm came to light after Michael Woodford, the first non-Japanese chief executive at the company, was sacked in October 2011 after questioning the accounts.