Ultrasonic CEO resurfaces in China, denies taking money

(Agencies) Updated: 2014-09-22 16:32

SHANGHAI - The missing chief executive of embattled German-listed Chinese shoe maker Ultrasonic AG has resurfaced in China to deny absconding with millions of dollars of company money, telling local media he had been travelling and lost his phone.

An official in the company's human resources department told Reuters by telephone on Monday that CEO Wu Qingyong, who was dismissed last week after his abrupt disappearance, was in China and planning to visit the company's facilities.

The official, who gave only his family name Pi, added that senior executives had met to discuss the matter on Sunday, but Wu had not been present.

In a video interview with Chinese news outlet Sina, posted late on Sunday, Wu said he had simply been on holiday with his grandson and had lost his mobile phone.

"Rumours say that I took more than a billion yuan. This is pure rumour. No such thing has happened. The company's financial situation remains normal," Wu said. The Sina video said the interview had taken place in the southern city of Quanzhou.

Ultrasonic said last Tuesday that Wu Qingyong and his son, Chief Operating Officer Wu Minghong, had been missing since the weekend, and most of the company's cash reserves in China and Hong Kong had vanished. On Thursday, the company said the pair had withdrawn the cash in two tranches.

In the seven-minute interview, in which Wu appeared with another son Wu Mingjun, the elder Wu added that he intended to investigate and track down those responsible for publishing the "announcement" as well as spreading the rumours.

Wu's comments appear to put him at loggerheads with the supervisory board of Ultrasonic, which formally dismissed him last Thursday, saying he and his son had drawn down a $60 million credit facility in August and transferred money to China from Hong Kong before disappearing.

A Hong Kong-based official for Ultrasonic declined to comment on Monday, but said the firm would release a statement.

Human resources official Pi declined to comment further.

A person who picked up a phone number linked to Wu Qingyong claimed it was a wrong number. Wu's assistant at Ultrasonic was not immediately available for comment.