C2000 staff suspended amid accounting probe

Five employees affected not thought to be at board or director level

Several Computer 2000 employees are understood to have been suspended as the investigation into the distributor's accounting practices by parent Tech Data gathers speed.

Tech Data announced on 21 March that it will restate three years of numbers after uncovering "improprieties" relating to how UK subsidiary Computer 2000 reflected vendor accounting.

The NASDAQ-listed firm expects the restatement could lead it to cut previously reported net profit by $25m to $33m, adding that the figure could change depending on how the investigation pans out.

According to sources, "men in suits" descended on Computer 2000's Basingstoke HQ last week. Five staff are thought to have been suspended, although CRN understands that none of them held board or director-level roles.

Computer 2000 refused to comment for the story.

The initial announcement sparked a 10 per cent fall in Tech Data's share price and since then a group of top investors has retained a law firm to investigate whether a number of the distributor's officers and directors "breached their fiduciary duties".