Audit firm chief quits in Parmalat scandal

THE head of auditing firm Grant Thornton’s Italian unit has resigned and his partner has been suspended indefinitely following their detentions in the Parmalat scandal on fraud accusations, the company said.

Lorenzo Penca, chairman of Grant Thornton, and his partner Maurizio Bianchi, were detained along with five other Parmalat officials and lawyers yesterday on suspicion they helped contribute to the company’s bankruptcy through false accounting and fraud.

Grant Thornton International said in a statement that it had accepted the resignation of Penca as chairman of its Italian firm and that Bianchi had been suspended indefinitely.