The ex-finance boss of Tesco on Wednesday became the last director to be acquitted over the supermarket’s accounting scandal after a judge said there was no case against him.
Carl Rogberg, who suffered a heart attack in February, was accused of fraud and false accounting with Chris Bush, Tesco’s former UK boss, and John Scouler, an ex-commercial director.
But he did not stand trial with his colleagues in September until he recovered. In December, a judge dismissed the charges against Bush and Scouler halfway through a retrial because of lack of evidence.
Today’s result ends the trial brought by the Serious Fraud Office over a £250 million profit black hole at the groceries giant, in another embarrassing defeat for the SFO.
Rogberg said: “It is a huge relief that this day has finally come. While I always had faith that it would, the journey here has not been an easy one. The trial has had enormous consequences on my health and exemplary career, as well as for my wife, my son, my family and my friends.
“In short, there was never any evidence of my wrongdoing and I should never have been charged. I have serious questions for Tesco and the SFO about the way this case has been handled throughout.”
The SFO, which had been considering a retrial, could not be reached for comment.
The accounting scandal caused Tesco’s market value to collapse by £2 billion in 2014 and engulfed it in one of the worst corporate crises.
The SFO is expected to publish details of its agreement with Tesco, which paid a fine of £129 million in March 2017 and avoided trial. Lawyers for the defendants have argued, however, that it was unfair to publish those facts which ascribe wrongdoing to them.
Previous high-profile reverses for the SFO include a failed prosecution of the property tycoon Tchenguiz brothers.
