Johnson & Johnson confirms it's under investigation

Johnson & Johnson says it's under investigation by the US Food and Drug Administration.

The company says the probe is "presumably" related to a lawsuit filed by an ex-employee in which he made allegations about the company's record-keeping.

The company says it intends to vigorously defend itself against the employee's lawsuit. It will also fully cooperate with investigators.

"The employee was a utilities worker with no manufacturing responsibility," Johnson & Johnson says in a statement.

"After investigating the allegations, the company found no support for them."

The company says the matters alleged in the suit won't have affected the integrity of its products.

Earlier, the New York Times named the employee who filed the lawsuit as Hector Arce, a former worker at the Puerto Rico factory.

Arce, who was fired in March 1999, claims he was pressed to falsify data to cover up manufacturing lapses and then was suspended a few days before an expected interview with FDA inspectors, said the paper.