UK abandons case against iSoft directors

By Sebastian Salek

LONDON (Reuters) - FCA said on Monday it will not pursue a second retrial of four former directors of healthcare software company iSoft, dealing a blow in its financial crime-fighting credentials.

A judge threw out the case against the four men early in July following errors in the handling of a key piece of evidence. Their first trial ended in a hung jury last August.

Former iSoft chairman Patrick Cryne and ex-directors Stephen Graham, Timothy Whiston and John Whelan were accused of conspiring to bury bad news and hoodwink investors between 2003 and 2006. All four denied the charges.

The prosecutions, brought by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and its predecessor the Financial Services Authority (FSA), followed a seven-year investigation.

"The collapse of this case will be a huge blow to the FCA," said Victoria Turner of law firm Pannone, which represented Whelan.

She said regulators had "pursued both trials, in part, on an incorrect basis which would have been uncovered earlier if disclosure from the prosecution had been adequate."

ISoft, involved in a 6.2 billion pound upgrade of computer systems for Britain's National Health Service, in 2006 reported possible accounting irregularities at the firm.

The FCA said it had decided not to pursue the case as it would not be in the public interest.

"This is of course a disappointing outcome," said Tracey McDermott, director of enforcement and financial crime at the FCA.

"The problems that have arisen in this case result from a particularly unusual set of circumstances, which are unlikely to recur."

(Editing by David Cowell)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/uk-abandons-case-against-isoft-directors-173732215.html

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