Three senior executives of Walloon arms manufacturer FN Herstal have been asked to resign over the scandal which saw an employee embezzle more than €15 million out of the company, RTBF reports.
Three directors, Philippe Claessens (former CEO), Jean-Sébastian Belle (Board Chairman), and Laurent Levaux (Audit Committee Chairman) have been asked by Belgium’s French-speaking region to voluntarily step down from their positions. Levaux has already made it clear that he will not comply with the request.
Wallonia, who holds shares in the company, argues that, if there is no clear fault within the company, other than the now-fired employee, then the moral responsibility for the embezzlement should fall to the executives.
The former employee, John-Thomas Mayaka, is said to have been the head of a web of corruption at the company’s purchasing department. Mayaka created a system of fake invoices for goods that were nearly delivered. The former employee’s scam continued for almost 10 years without arousing suspicion.
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The former employee now faces a sizeable legal battle. The company has already filed a complaint directly with an examining magistrate against the employee. The Walloon state will also join as a civil party, represented by Wallonie Entreprendre, to demand restitution.
The new management of FN Herstal, which uncovered the web of corruption, says it intends to continue its investigation into the embezzlement and find out whether the company had fallen victim to any other fraud.
