Altice France suspends a senior executive after the arrest of the group’s ex-number two

The explosion caused by the arrest in Portugal, on July 13, of Armando Pereira, the historical partner of Patrick Drahi, the owner of Altice, for multiple alleged charges of financial fraud, begins to be felt in France, where the group owns SFR and BFM-TV. Arthur Dreyfuss, CEO of Altice France, announced on Wednesday August 2, during an extraordinary economic and social committee (CSE), the suspension of Tatiana Agova-Bregou from her position as executive director in charge of content, acquisitions and partnerships. , especially with streaming platforms and film studios. She had been a member of the executive committee of Altice France since February 2019, after having worked for almost ten years in the content division of Numericable, the ancestor of Altice.

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In a article published on July 26, the Portuguese newspaper Sabadowho cites telephone tapping carried out by the investigators, indicated that Mme Agova-Bregou “had a professional but also intimate relationship” with Mr. Pereira. She would have been the beneficiary of an apartment located in Neuilly-sur-Seine (Hauts-de-Seine), paid for by a company of businessman Hernani Antunes, a close friend of Mr. Pereira. Mme Agova-Bregou did not respond to the request from the World.

Audits launched in several countries

Mme Agova-Bregou is the first senior Altice France executive to be suspended since Mr. Pereira’s arrest. Other officials have been dismissed in several entities of the group, including Yossi Benchetrit, son-in-law of Mr. Pereira and purchasing director of Altice United States.

The management of Altice France does not comment saying that it wants “preserving the business”. “It’s not about entering a witch hunt”continues a leader on condition of anonymity while ensuring that the group is determined to cut all ties with the persons or companies incriminated in the investigation of the Portuguese justice.

During the CSE, the management declared that “less than 4% of the total purchasing expenditure of the Altice France group [8 milliards d’euros] are involved in this case.. Internal audits have been launched by Altice in all the countries where the group is present to precisely assess the damage and responsibilities. These should last several months. The UNSA, SFR’s leading union, “expects the internal investigation to ensure that there is no system of predation of wealth within the group”, she said in a statement released after the CSE. In the event of proven harm to employees, it reserves the right to take legal action.

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