The former chief executive of Tesco, Philip Clarke, will not face any fraud charges from the Serious Fraud Office following the supermarket's accounting scandal.
Mr Clarke was ousted from Tesco in July 2014 after failing to halt a slide in sales and profits. He was replaced in September 2014 by Unilever's Dave Lewis but just two weeks later the supermarket was thrown into its biggest ever crisis when it revealed a £250m hole in its accounts, which later rose to £263m.
Mr Clarke's lawyer, David Corker of Corker Binning, said that the ex-Tesco boss had been informed he would not face charges.
"Following a thorough review of evidence that lasted a year, there has been a decision not to initiate criminal proceedings. The SFO has prosecuted three men but has decided that in his [Mr Clarke's case] there is insufficient evidence to provide a realistic prospect of conviction."
Three former Tesco directors will stand trial in the crown court next September to face fraud charges in relation to the retailer's accounting hole and face a maximum 10 years in jail.
Chris Bush, 50, Carl Rogberg, 49, and John Scouler, 48, have been accused of acting dishonestly for personal gain and abusing their positions by falsely inflating Tesco’s supplier income.
Mr Bush was Tesco's UK managing director until the scandal emerged two years ago, while Mr Rogberg was UK finance director and Mr Scouler was food commercial director.
The Serious Fraud Office said that it was still investigating the accounting black hole, but it is thought the probe could finish by the end of the year.
Tesco still faces a £100m legal claim from investors who claim that they lost money in the share slide that followed revelations about the supermarket's black hole.
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