Bosses quit suspended Alpha amid accounting investigation

Guardian Unlimited Business | | Bosses quit suspended Alpha amid accounting investigation: "The chief executive and finance director of the in-flight caterer and airport retailer Alpha Airports Group resigned yesterday as more details emerged of an accounting investigation that led to Alpha's shares being suspended three weeks ago. Kevin Abbott and Heather McRae, who joined some 10 years ago, left at once.
Alpha said they had gone 'in the best interests of the business'. Peter Williams, former chief executive of Selfridges, is the new chief executive and Tim Redburn, aformer chief executive of Simon Group, has been named interim finance director. Alpha's shares were suspended at 84p last month when its auditor, PricewaterhouseCoopers, took the highly unusual step of withholding approval from Alpha's full-year results. The company had shown a 6% rise in underlying profits to �18.5m. Two non-executive directors were asked to investigate. Mr Williams, who was approached to take over a fortnight ago, has since joined the committee.

The deal in question is a five-year �7.5m catering contract with Excel Airways, part of the Icelandic-owned Avion, which was floated in Reykjavik this year. In a statement to the London Stock Exchange, Alpha said last week that 'senior personnel' had misrepresented information to PwC.
It is understood that no individuals nor the Alpha Group stood to gain from the details misrepresented but the Stock Exchange said Alpha had 'consciously assisted' its client in a way that could have enabled it 'to manipulate its own financial statements' as the client's parent company was preparing for flotation. Alpha services more than 100 airlines and runs more than 200 retail outlets at 77 airports in 15 countries."