Tech and Web NEWS
San Diego biotechnology company Sequenom Fires CEO Harry Stylli, Elizabeth Dragon, Paul Hawran and others after investigation
By Amarendra Bhushan for CEOWORLD Magazine Updated:September 29, 2009
Get CEOWORLD Magazine digital monthly version. special- Top Capital Cities for a business Traveler, # Interview with Minister of Tourism of Greece. 1 Issues Subscription= $1 Only, 10 Issues Subscription= $5 Only. Grab your copy now!!!!
The San Diego biotechnology company Sequenom inc (SQNM.O) said it dismissed Chief Executive Harry Stylli and four others after an independent panel of directors found the company failed to adequately police its studies of a noninvasive prenatal test for Down’s syndrome.
Sequenom said its nonmanagement directors concluded after the five-month inquiry that the company failed to implement adequate standards for testing of a prenatal Down syndrome test that had been considered highly promising.
The discovery of the data problems in April led the company to postpone the launch of the test and to suspend four research and development employees. The test remains on hold, though the company has not disclosed specifically what went wrong.
Board chairman Harry F. Hixson Jr., a former president and chief operating officer of Amgen Inc., who takes over as interim CEO, said the investigation raised “serious concerns” that led independent directors to lose confidence in chief executive Harry Stylli and several other employees.
A total of four executives and three other employees were terminated or resigned, the company says. They included president and CEO Harry Stylli and Senior Vice President for Research and Development Elizabeth Dragon, while Chief Financial Officer Paul Hawran resigned Friday.
The company said the individuals who were dismissed or resigned had denied any wrongdoing. But it said the “committee’s investigation has raised serious concerns, resulting in a loss of confidence by the independent members of our board of directors in the personnel involved.”
Sequenom’s announcement left many questions unanswered, in particular how exactly the data was “mishandled” and whether what happened was mere sloppiness or outright falsification and fraud.
The lack of detail prompted one investor on Sequenom’s conference call Monday to accuse the company of “dancing around” what had happened, saying that would undermine investor confidence in the company.
Like this article! |
|
|
|
|
(No Ratings Yet)
Loading ...17446 views
Comments
Grab a copy of CEOWORLD Magazine for $1 only!!!
