By Kiyoshi Takenaka
TOKYO (Reuters) – Japanese endoscope maker Olympus Corp said on Monday it has fired CEO Stefan Kaufmann following an accusation that he had bought illegal drugs, sending his shares down 6%.
Kaufmann, a German national who only took over in April last year, had been tasked with expanding Olympus’ medical device business after former CEO Yasuo Takeuchi led the company through years of asset sales.
Takeuchi, 67 and director of Olympus, will resume CEO duties for the time being, the company said.
“Upon receiving an allegation that Mr. Stefan Kaufmann had purchased illegal drugs… Olympus, in consultation with external legal counsel, immediately investigated the facts,” the company said in a statement. It declined to comment on who made the accusation or details of the investigation.
“Based on the results of the investigation, the Board of Directors has unanimously determined that Mr. Stefan Kaufmann is likely to have engaged in conduct inconsistent with our Global Code of Conduct, our core values and our corporate culture.”
The board asked for his resignation and Kaufmann complied, the statement said.
Reuters could not reach Kaufmann for comment.
According to Kyodo news agency, Olympus has consulted the police about the matter. Police searched Kaufmann’s home in June but found no illegal drugs, the report said, citing an unknown investigative source.
A spokesman for Tokyo police said the information was not something it had announced.
Kaufmann, a 56-year-old veteran with more than two decades at Olympus, took on the top job shortly after the company received warning letters from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration over violations related to reporting requirements and quality system rules for endoscopes and endoscopes. associated accessories.
His top two priorities were addressing these regulatory issues and expanding the company’s core medical technology business, according to a person who worked with him and spoke on condition of anonymity.
Olympus was interested in deals in digital technology and robotics after selling its camera, voice recorder and microscope businesses, Takeuchi told Reuters in a joint interview with Kaufmann in November 2022.
Olympus’ 6% decline on Monday put the company’s shares on track for the biggest one-day decline in nearly three months. Since Kaufmann became CEO, the company’s shares are up 16%, underperforming the 38% gain for the .
Olympus has had its fair share of corporate scandals.
Thirteen years ago, the company’s first foreign CEO, Michael Woodford, exposed accounting fraud related to overpaying for acquisitions to hide losses.
Woodford was fired shortly after his appointment and lost the battle to take control of Olympus.
In 2015, Toyota Motor (NYSE:) director Julie Hamp, an American, was arrested in Japan on suspicion of illegally importing the painkiller Oxycodone into the country. She was later released.
