Olympus fires CEO after allegations he bought illegal drugs — sending shares down 6%

Kaufmann, a German national that only took the helm in April in 2015, had actually been charged with broadening Olympus’ clinical devices company after coming before chief executive officer Yasuo Takeuchi steered the business through years of possession sales.

“Based upon the outcomes of the examination, the Board of Supervisors with one voice identified that Mr. Stefan Kaufmann most likely taken part in behaviors that were inconsistent with our global code of conduct, our core worths, and our company society.”

Kaufmann, a 56-year-old veteran of greater than two decades at Olympus, handled the top job soon after the business had gotten advising letters from the Food and Drug Administration concerning infractions associated with reporting demands and quality system laws for endoscopes and related devices.

According to Kyodo news company, Olympus spoke with the police about the issue. Police browsed Kaufmann’s residence in June however found no controlled substances, it reported, citing an unknown investigatory resource.

“Upon obtaining an accusation that Mr. Stefan Kaufmann had actually acquired controlled substances … Olympus, in consultation with outdoors legal advise, instantly checked out the realities,” the business claimed in a statement. It declined to comment on that made the claims or information of the examination.

Olympus was interested in sell digital innovation and robotics after liquidating its camera, voice recorder and microscopic lense organizations, Takeuchi told Reuters in a November 2022 joint meeting with Kaufmann.