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Olympus scandal: Former executives sentenced | Olympus scandal: Former executives sentenced |
(35 minutes later) | |
Three former executives of Olympus have been given suspended jail terms for their roles in an accounting scandal. | Three former executives of Olympus have been given suspended jail terms for their roles in an accounting scandal. |
Former chairman Tsuyoshi Kikukawa and executives Hisashi Mori and Hideo Yamada pleaded guilty last year to charges of falsifying accounts to cover up losses of $1.7bn (£1.1bn). | Former chairman Tsuyoshi Kikukawa and executives Hisashi Mori and Hideo Yamada pleaded guilty last year to charges of falsifying accounts to cover up losses of $1.7bn (£1.1bn). |
Mr Kikukawa and Mr Yamada were given three-year sentences and Mr Mori a two-and-a-half-year sentence. | Mr Kikukawa and Mr Yamada were given three-year sentences and Mr Mori a two-and-a-half-year sentence. |
Olympus was ordered to pay 700m yen ($7m; £4.6m) in fines for its role. | |
The scandal is one of the biggest financial frauds in Japan's history. | The scandal is one of the biggest financial frauds in Japan's history. |
It came to light in 2011 after then chief executive Michael Woodford was dismissed from his post after challenging Mr Kikukawa and the board over suspiciously large payments related to acquisitions. | It came to light in 2011 after then chief executive Michael Woodford was dismissed from his post after challenging Mr Kikukawa and the board over suspiciously large payments related to acquisitions. |
That led to an investigation being launched, which revealed a cover-up of losses dating back to the 1990s. | That led to an investigation being launched, which revealed a cover-up of losses dating back to the 1990s. |
Mr Kikukawa, former executive vice-president Mr Mori and former auditing officer Mr Yamada were arrested in February last year and later indicted on suspected violation of the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act. | |
All three had admitted to hiding losses in September last year. | All three had admitted to hiding losses in September last year. |
The scandal also hit Olympus shareholders, as the firm lost almost 80% of its value in the aftermath of the revelations. | |
However, there have been signs that the firm may be recovering from the scandal. | |
It has announced a major overhaul and entered into an alliance with electronics giant Sony to try to boost its share of the global medical equipment market. | |
The company has returned to profit and its shares have also recovered most of their losses. |
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