P. M. BRIEFING : Ferranti Chief Quits in Scandal
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LONDON — The chairman of Ferranti International PLC resigned today after struggling for months to guide the troubled defense electronics group through a scandal and ensuing financial crisis.
Sir Derek Alun-Jones, 56, had served as chairman of Britain’s third-largest defense contractor since 1978. He joined the company as chief executive in 1975.
A Ferranti spokesman said the reasons for Alun-Jones’ resignation are “confidential” but suggested that it stemmed from an alleged $354-million fraud discovered last year after the company’s acquisition of a U.S. defense equipment manufacturer.
“Somebody’s head must fall and it was his,” spokesman Sean Kennedy said.
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