Eimskip: Letter from Gylfi Sigfússon´s attorney concerning District Prosecutor‘s investigation
After closing of the stock market last Friday, Eimskip received a letter from the attorney of Gylfi Sigfússon, former CEO of the company. The subject of the letter is a court case to be filed by Gylfi at the District Court of Reykjavík where he demands that the investigation conducted by the District Prosecutor, based on the Icelandic Competition Authority’s complaint from 2014, to be ceased. The Icelandic Competition Authority has been investigating Eimskip since 2010, for over nine years.
Gylfi will file his case at the District Court of Reykjavík tomorrow, 20th of May.
Gylfi’s principal argument is based on the fact that the Icelandic Competition Authority initiated its investigation in an unlawful manner. The investigation of the District Prosecutor is based on the investigation of the Icelandic Competition Authority, which is such a defect that as a result, the prosecutor’s investigation should be ceased.
Gylfi also bases his case on the argument that the investigation has been conducted in an unlawful manner, violating his human rights protected by the Constitution of the Republic of Iceland. The investigation is based on evidence gathered by the Icelandic Competition Authority, under threat of administrative fines, after Gylfi was reported to the District Prosecutor. It also seems that District Prosecutor has investigated matters that do not relate to the alleged crimes reported by the Icelandic Competition Authority. Also, the very long time the investigation has taken.
Furthermore Gylfi’s case outlines that the investigation by the District Prosecutor is unlawful for numerous reasons, one of them being that the Icelandic Competition Authority held back information from the district court when requesting search warrant at Eimskip premises, that there is no legal basis for search warrants or investigation of seized documents, and that the criminal investigation in relation to Gylfi has in fact been carried out by employees of Icelandic Competition Authority and not the District Prosecutor, as is duly stipulated by law.
As a result of all of the above he demands that the investigation will be ceased.
The case is filed by Gylfi Sigfússon in his own name, but Eimskip will watch closely how the case will progress and evaluate how to react as many of the facts pertain to the company’s own case with the Icelandic Competition Authority.
