Mr. Drahi says that «it's very annoying to see the name 'corruption' next to the group.» Credit: Christoph Morin/Getty Images Europe
BT investor Patrick Drai said he «feels betrayed» by an alleged corruption scandal in his telecommunications empire that prompted the arrest of his right hand.
French The billionaire said he was «shocked» after the Portuguese authorities opened a criminal investigation into alleged corruption by individuals and top executives in his vast media and telecommunications group.
Mr Drai and his company Altice were not involved, but the scandal prompted an internal review in addition to a judicial investigation in Portugal.
Speaking about the scandal for the first time, he said: “It came as a shock and a huge disappointment to me. If the allegations are true, I feel betrayed by a small group of people, including one of our oldest colleagues.”
Armando Pereira, co-founder of Altice and Drai's right-hand man, was fired last month. under house arrest pending investigation, his lawyer said. He denies any wrongdoing.
Talking to investors on Monday, Drai called Altice the victim of an alleged fraud and said the company had placed 15 employees on vacation in Portugal, France and the US while the investigation was underway.< /p>
He added: «It's very frustrating to see the name 'corruption' next to the group… and next to my name.
«I assure you that we take this issue very seriously and we are taking swift and proactive action to understand the truth and protect the group from any harm in case the allegations are true.»
Mr. Draja's right hand, Armando Pereira (right), under house arrest Photo: ERIC PIERMONT/AFP
Altis said the corruption case would not affect cash or liquidity and that his financial outlook for the year remained unchanged.
The case focuses on Mr. Pereira, who was one of several individuals arrested in Portugal in as part of Operation Picoash. As part of the investigation, officials raided dozens of offices, homes and law firms across the country.
Portuguese authorities said they made three arrests and confiscated documents and property, including luxury cars, worth about 20 million euros. (£17.2 million).
Prosecutors accuse Mr Pereira of participating in fraudulent real estate transactions and hiding profits from the sale of assets while working at Altice Portugal. One of the deals being investigated is the sale of four buildings in Lisbon for €15m.
However, officials believe this may be just the tip of the iceberg and the scams could spread to other areas, including football TV rights.
Illegal profits could exceed 250 million euros at the expense of both Altice and the state. , according to media reports.
Pereira's lawyer said his client was «the target of a large-scale attack in Portugal in recent days.»
They added: «The communication around this operation was done in this way that this led to him being immediately found guilty in public opinion,” the lawyer said, adding that his team would demonstrate that “the reality is not so simple.”
Mr. Drahi said that if the accusations were true, these people «very carefully concealed their actions from me, their colleagues and the whole group.»
He added: «I really think that our management was good, and we can trust all of our management teams.”
Altice is one of the largest telecommunications companies in France, operating in countries such as the Dominican Republic, Israel and Portugal.
Mr. Drai built a reputation for cutting costs and closing debt-financed deals, and took Altice private last year in a deal valuing the business at €6.4bn.
In May, the billionaire increased his stake in BT to almost 25%, putting the tycoon on the brink of a blocking stake in the British telecommunications giant.
Altice UK, an investment company controlled by Mr Drahy, said it did not intend to make a takeover bid for BT, adding that Mr. Drahi is not a candidate for a seat on the company's board of directors.
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