German court issues arrest warrant for former Steinhoff CEO Jooste

German prosecutors have applied for an arrest warrant against Markus Jooste after he failed to show up in court earlier on Tuesday for the main hearing.

The public prosecutor’s office in Oldenburg applied for the suspension of the proceedings and the issuance of an arrest warrant.

The chamber has suspended the proceedings against Jooste and will decide on the warrant application.

The trial is the first criminal charge against Jooste to be heard since Steinhoff’s collapse five years ago over an accounting scandal.

Steinhoff is listed on both the Johannesburg and Frankfurt Stock Exchanges.

Jooste is accused of an accounting irregularity at the company which first surfaced in 2017 sending the share prices to nose diving.

This led to several investors suffering huge losses, among the list was the Public Investment Corporation which invested millions of government employees’ pension funds and former chairman Christo Wiese.

Steinhoff share prices plunged by over 90% after revelations of accounting irregularities on the 5th of December 2017.

VIDEO | Former Steinhoff CEO Markus Jooste a no-show for his fraud trial in Germany:

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