PARIS (Reuters) - Public prosecutors have placed the French unit of Swedish furniture retailer Ikea
The company confirmed that Ikea France itself, Chief Executive Stefan Vanoverbeke and Chief Financial Officer Dariusz Rychert had been placed under such an investigation - a move which in French law precedes a possible trial unless the inquiry is dropped at a later stage.
"We insist that the presumption of innocence applies and Ikea France continues to assist the authorities to establish the truth," a spokeswoman said.
The move follows a police search of the company's French headquarters earlier this month.
In April 2012, the company acknowledged practices in breach of its ethical standards and overhauled its management team the following month.
(Reporting by Dominique Vidalon; Editing by Natalie Huet, Mark John and David Evans)
