Two LVMH officials were detained by the Paris police as part of an investigation into the divulging of confidential information. While their names were withheld, the daily Le Monde reported that “the most influential of Bernard Arnault’s advisors” was involved. The focus of the affair is Bernard Squarcini, once head of the French police’s secret services under former president Nicolas Sarkozy and now owner of Krynos, a private investigation agency. According to the accusation, Squarcini got confidential information from police sources, which he sold to LVMH officials. This allegedly occurred during a lawsuit between LVMH and Hermès International in 2013. In that year the French bourse ascertained that LVMH was secretly acquiring its competitor’s shares. According to the criminal complaint Hermès filed in July of the previous year, LVMH allegedly intended to thereby manipulate Hermès’ market price. A second person is involved in the investigation, Christian Flaesch, at the time head of the Paris Judiciary Police. (pt)
Industrial espionage in Paris: two LVMH execs arrested
