Wirecard’s Jan Marsalek added to Interpol’s most wanted list

Former Wirecard AG executive Jan Marsalek was added to Interpol’s red notice list, sparking a worldwide manhunt for one of the executives allegedly at the center of a multibillion-euro accounting scandal at the fintech company.

The move alerts police worldwide that Germany wants help to track down the former manager as part of the criminal probe into the firm’s meltdown.

Marsalek has been at large since Wirecard’s woes escalated in June. The former chief operating officer was fired after the company disclosed about 80 percent of its net cash was missing from its balance sheet. He is one of the prime suspects of the criminal probe by Munich prosecutors.

Former CEO Markus Braun and two other former officials were arrested in July as prosecutors said the company knew about massive losses as early as 2015. They and Marsalek conspired to obtain about 3.2 billion euros ($3.7 billion) in fraudulent loans, allegedly inflating the books with fake assets to make the company appear more attractive to investors, clients and lenders, according to prosecutors.

German media has reported that Marsalek fled to Belarus and may be still there or in Russia.

A red notice is a request to law enforcement worldwide to locate and arrest a person pending extradition.