Investors welcome Horie sentence
The Daily Yomiuri. Tokyo: Mar 17, 2007. pg. 1EXCERPT
Friday's ruling by the Tokyo District Court that saw Takafumi Horie sentenced to 2-1/2 years in prison was welcomed by Livedoor Co. shareholders who have filed a damages suit against him and other executives.
Damages sought in the lawsuits against Livedoor likely will reach about 60 billion yen, as Fuji Television Network, Inc., which was once a business partner with Livedoor, also plans to seek compensation of about 34.5 billion yen.
Livedoor's market capitalization peaked in January 2004 at more than 900 billion yen, but after the scandal came to light, it started to drop. In April 2006, the stock was delisted from the Tokyo Stock Exchange's Mothers market.
Livedoor Finance Co., which played a major part in Livedoor group's falsification of financial reports, is to be dissolved at the end of this month. Other major subsidiaries, including real estate company Dynacity Corp., also have been sold.
"A prison sentence was inevitable," said a former executive of Livedoor Marketing Co. ... [they "cooked the books for companies that were running at a loss and made it look like they were making profits. Plus, he made a massive amount of personal profit."