German court issues warrant for ex-Steinhoff chief Jooste
A German court issued an arrest warrant against the former boss of scandal-hit retail giant Steinhoff after he failed to appear for the start of his trial, a court spokesman said Wednesday.
Markus Jooste did not turn up for the opening of the hearing against him at the court in the northwestern city of Oldenburg in April.
The 62-year-old ex-CEO, who managed the firm from South Africa, is accused of using fake transactions to artificially inflate the group's profits.
The arrest warrant against Jooste was issued two weeks ago, according to reports from Bloomberg News, after prosecutors made a request to the court.
Steinhoff was hit by a huge scandal in 2017 when it was investigated on suspicion of fraud, with a reported six billion euro ($6.6 billion) hole in its accounts.
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The South Africa-based company, which is listed in both Frankfurt and Johannesburg, saw nearly 98 percent of its share value wiped out as it faced a barrage of litigation from aggrieved shareholders and business partners, including former chairman Christo Wiese.
Jooste resigned after the scandal broke but denied all knowledge of accounting fraud.
South African courts in 2022 approved a $1.6 billion payout by embattled retail giant Steinhoff to settle fraud claims.
