The 41-year-old former CEO of Finland’s telecom giant, Sonera, spent nearly two weeks in jail late last year after being arrested, but not charged, as part of Helsinki’s investigation into whether Sonera violated Finnish privacy laws in 2000 and 2001; Relander was chief executive for just six months, resigning in June 2001 to join Accel. The government’s allegation: Sonera monitored phone records of employees, board members and even journalists.
The financier’s lawyer, Jussi Savonen, has strongly denied the accusations, as have lawyers for five other current or former Sonera executives who were detained and released pending possible filing of formal charges. (Neither Relander nor Accel partners in London or at the firm’s Palo Alto, California, headquarters were available for comment.)
Relander joined the tech-oriented venture firm as a general partner in London two years ago to help oversee its new, $500 million Accel Europe Fund. Sonera was facing great uncertainty after spending vast sums to buy 3G licenses for next-generation cell phone services. The general business slowdown was a further drag on the company’s share price. Relander was one of many senior execs to get the boot in the midst of a crisis that ultimately led to Sonera’s merger with Sweden’s Telia last March (see Deals of the Year, page 42).
Finland’s National Bureau of Investigation charges that Sonera combed through internal phone records to discover who might have tipped off reporters to management’s disputes over strategy. The bureau’s investigators also assert that Sonera’s security unit spied on two employees, including one involved in Sonera’s E3.7 billion ($3.8 billion) acquisition of 3G licenses in western Europe -- which were later written off. The police had until January 15 to file charges, although local news reports indicate that they may seek an extension. Meanwhile, Relander’s Accel Europe Fund is continuing to invest in . . . telecoms.
