Robotic chief quits over fraud

By DAILY MAIL REPORTER
Updated: 19:00 EST, 7 July 2000

The powerboat-racing chief executive of Robotic Technology Systems has quit after the Court of Appeals in his native Finland upheld his convictions for fraud and other financial offences.

Jukka-Pekka Mattila, 36, who led the Finnish power-boat team to the 1992 world championship, founded Robotic and floated it in London in 1996.

A spokesman said: 'He's closeted with his lawyers and his family, and doesn't want to talk to anyone.'

RTS managing director Philip Johnston said: 'This has nothing to do with the company. It is a personal matter and 'JP'' did the honourable thing.' Shares in RTS, which writes software for hi-tech industrial robots, plunged 105p to 565p on Aim.

The charges stemmed from his role in the 1991 collapse of Finnish property group Notareal Oy. He ran the company from 1985 until its failure under a mountain of debt. In 1994, he was charged with 94 counts of 'credit fraud, tax offences, accounting offences and borrower's misdemeanours'. He was found guilty on four counts in 1997 but was, initially, acquitted on the rest.

He maintained his innocence, blaming the charges on his prominence.

However, his appeal proved an own goal. On Thursday, the court upheld his four convictions and - using a quirk of Finnish law - over-turned some previous acquittals. Mattila will take the matter to the Supreme Court, a process that could last more than a year.

RTS, which recently raised another £68m, promises business as usual.

Johnston says: 'He had no operational role. His main involvement was in investor relations. I run the company.'

However, Mattila still owns £27m-worth of shares, or 9% of the company. He resigned yesterday as non-executive director of the recently demerged Internet minnow RTS Networks.