By John Carrey at Dow Jones:
On the morning of July 26, Federal Bureau of Investigation agents barged into the plush 44th-floor Manhattan office of Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. Chief Executive Peter R. Dolan. The agents sifted through his emails and riffled through his files for several hours, leaving behind a mess.
Mr. Dolan didn't let on to subordinates that anything was amiss. That afternoon, he attended a meeting about the company's second-quarter earnings and didn't mention the raid. The next day, he flew to Houston and gave a speech to doctors treating AIDS in Africa.
Mr. Dolan has survived many crises in his five years at Bristol-Myers's helm -- in particular a multibillion-dollar accounting scandal that unfolded under his watch. The company's share price is down nearly 60% since he took over.
Yet he has held onto his job.
Now the anger of Bristol-Myers shareholders is reaching a boiling point.
The issue: Mr. Dolan's strategy for protecting Plavix -- the company's best-selling drug and the source of one-third of its profits -- from generic competition.
Mr. Dolan tried to pay Apotex Inc. of Toronto, the maker of generic Plavix, to go away for a while. But the deal unraveled after the Justice Department's antitrust unit opened a criminal probe into it and the FBI carried out its raid. Apotex has started selling its drug, exploiting concessions it extracted from Bristol-Myers during the negotiations.
No charges have been filed against Mr. Dolan or Bristol-Myers.
Bristol-Myers's board, which until recently had steadfastly supported Mr. Dolan, has become worried that his loss of credibility with investors may be impairing his ability to lead the company effectively.
The board is scheduled to meet Sept. 12, and Mr. Dolan's fate is likely to top the agenda.
Mr. Dolan declined to be interviewed.
Much much more
Insider's view: it would take a miracle for Dolan to survive this debacle.
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