A British trader who exposed links between a US secretary and Jeffrey Epstein has been found dead in Thailand, as reported by the BBC.
Following the death, MPs are calling on the UK’s commercial watchdog’s treatment of whistleblowers to be investigated.
Simon Andriesz, a former senior employee of BCG Partners, previously raised concerns over evidence of foul play between Donald Trump-appointed US secretary Howard Lutnick and Jeffrey Epstein.
Andriesz raised the concerns with the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), the FBI and other watchdogs after uncovering business links between Epstein and Lutnick earlier this year.
Following his death, MPs have come forward saying that the events raise “deeply troubling questions” about the way whistleblowers are treated after coming forward to the FCA.
Andriesz’s family stated that he ‘took his own life’ on 23 September and that there were no signs of foul play.
What the FCA made of Andriesz’s claims
BCG Partners, owned by Howard Lutnick, let Andriesz go in 2017, but it didn’t keep him from spilling the beans to authorities.
Andriesz uncovered emails between Lutnick and former Prince Andrew in 2013 to, in his own words, “buy a prince”, in exchange for a £1 million loan.
BCG Partners also denies Andriesz’s claims that broker’s bonuses were “embezzled” for improper purposes. A claim the former employee took to the FCA.
However, the FCA had previously told Andriesz there was “insufficient evidence” to his claims.
BCG later told the BBC that it had strong policies protecting whistleblowers and that there would be no retaliation towards Andriesz.
John McDonnell, the Labour backbench MP and chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Investment Fraud and Fairer Financial Services, was not convinced.
McDonnell told the Times that Andriesz’s death was a “profound and preventable tragedy”, saying whistleblowers were “an essential part of the financial regulatory system”.
He further warned there would be consequences for the integrity of the system if people did not believe they would be “treated properly, protected appropriately and listened to seriously”.
A group of MPs have now called for the FCA to pay for an independent party to evaluate its handling of whistleblowers.