Paris Police Raid Vivendi Office
and Home of Former Chief
By THE NEW YORK TIMES
PARIS, Dec. 12 — In a fresh blow to Vivendi Universal's bruised business image, the French police today raided the corporation's Paris headquarters as well as the home of its former chairman, Jean-Marie Messier, as part of a continuing investigation into possible falsification of the group's accounts for 2000 and 2001.
The unannounced search by the Paris prosecutor's office came some six months after a similar raid was ordered by the Commission des Operations de Bourse, France's stock market supervisory body.
Vivendi Universal's stock, which has been nudging upward in recent weeks, fell with news of the police move. After opening at 16.33 euros this morning (about $16.40), it stood at 16.08 euros, 0.62 percent down, shortly before the Paris exchange closed.
After Mr. Messier's home was searched, the former Vivendi chief executive, who was ousted from his post in July, canceled a planned meeting with the Anglo-American Press Association in Paris.
In recent weeks, Mr. Messier has been trying to rebuild his image both by publishing a memoir of his downfall, "My True Diary," and by forming an investment counseling firm.
Vivendi, which is now run by Jean-René Fourtou, is currently also under investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission in the United States.
The latest French investigation into Mr. Messier's management began in October after a complaint by an association of minority shareholders.
They charged that Vivendi misrepresented its financial health both in its year-end accounts for 2000 and 2001 and in forecasts of its business prospects. This had the effect of artificially inflating the share price, they complained.
Mr. Messier has denied all the allegations that have been made against him.
He nonetheless left the corporation in dire straits, with a gigantic debt that has forced it into a major selloff of assets in recent months.
The New York Times reported today that Vivendi Universal had disclosed plans to sell off its prized modern art collection, which has long been a hallmark of the Seagram Building on Park Avenue.
