Return of the boss ousted one week ago

THE ousted boss of technology company WANdisco has made a shock return – just a week after being forced out with a ‘gun to his head’.

David Richards led a shareholder revolt to fight his way back to the company he founded 11 years ago after being sacked by chairman Paul Walker last Thursday.

Shares in the cloud computing company fell more than 20pc yesterday, despite Richards securing the backing of 58pc of investors.

Richards said he had been ‘ambushed’ by Walker at his London hotel last week and ordered to resign.

‘It was the stuff of cloak and dagger and spy novels,’ he said. ‘I was faced with a fait accompli and forced to resign. When you have a gun pointed to your head and you’re told to sign, it was a case of damage limitation.’

He claimed directors had not consulted shareholders over plans to sack him, and that he received the support of shareholders after his exit.

Walker, who took control after Richards’ resignation, left the company yesterday along with fellow director Ian Duncan. They had originally said WANdisco needed a change of management after suffering heavy losses.

New chief financial officer Erik Miller resigned on Wednesday night after just a week in the role.

In a joint statement, Duncan and Walker said: ‘Since the announcement of September 29, 2016, regarding David Richards stepping down from the board, we have been informed that approximately 58pc of the company’s shareholders support David’s reinstatement as chief executive. Accordingly, we have decided to resign from the board with immediate effect.’

Shares closed down 21.2pc, or 47.5p at 176.5p.