Over the years, many warnings have been issued against Armando Pereira’s practices. Everyone could have been eliminated by management though, and the group leaders had justifications for these behaviors.
In mid-July, Patrick Drahe’s right-hand man was arrested and charged in Portugal with corruption, money laundering and tax evasion. In particular, he was going to use his status and status within the Altice Group (the parent company of SFR and BFM) to illegally enrich himself.
Many repercussions
During the presentation of the team’s results in the first half, Patrick Drahi revealed his feeling of “betrayal” after these revelations. However, it seems that this was not fully convinced among the employees of the operating company, according to the report knowledgeable.
Indeed, employees would have noticed the arrival of many suppliers, often of Portuguese origin, after Altice’s acquisition of SFR in 2014. The suppliers “often provide modest services, sometimes more expensive,” according to information from the media.
But these questions were passed on to the group leaders present at some of the meetings. Questions will be asked of Patrick Drahé, Michel Combs, Alan Weil, or even human rights advocates. But all of these things would have swept out of control.
In addition to his 100% supplier which he sold to SFR for €305m, Armando Pereira would also go to friendly suppliers. Accomplices who returned money or benefits in kind and their companies were forced to contact the SFR, although with more than mixed results.
But that’s not all, even the purchase of equipment from Cisco and Huawei may be affected. Hence, the operator purchased its more expensive equipment from a supplier rather than directly from the manufacturer. SFR bought its Huawei products from JSC, a Portuguese company belonging to an alleged partner of Armando Pereira.
The involvement of Armando Pereira and his alleged associates in the companies that worked with SFR therefore seems enormous in light of the revelations by L’Informé. Especially since there was a reign of terror within the operator, as employees felt threatened with dismissal when discussing these choices.
Portuguese justice continues its investigations, but it could have taken too long, as it could have started long before Numéricable’s acquisition of SFR, and the many ramifications shouldn’t help either.
