Bed Bath & Beyond CFO Gustavo Arnal jumped from the 18th story of the Jenga Tower in NYC just one day after his company posted troubling news. Arnal’s job as Chief Financial Officer was to control the company’s finances. All things money-related fell into his realm of responsibility. The other day, however, Bed Bath & Beyond announced impending layoffs and the closure of 150 underperforming stores. They had been suffering financially for years. 52-year-old Arnal lived in the famous tower and left behind a wife and two adult daughters.
The reason for Arnal’s suicide is not officially known. He did not leave a note or tell anyone. And if he did, that information is not known at the moment. However, what is known is that Arnal was in trouble. In 2021, he made $2.9 million dollars as a result of his employment at Bed Bath and Beyond. Only $775,000 of that was salary. The rest was from his stock in the company. Obviously, the stock was worth much more than his direct compensation.
A lawsuit alleges that Arnal engaged in what is called a “pump and dump” scheme. What happens in this scam is that someone artificially raises the price of a stock and sells their shares at the peak before they inevitably fall. Bed Bath & Beyond’s stock price was as low as about $4. After Gustavo Arnal allegedly told lies to shareholders (along with his colleague Ryan Cohen), the price rose to well over $30 per share. At or around this point, Arnal sold his shares. Shortly after he “dumped” his shares, the price plummeted to about $9 per share. Then the news of Bed Bath & Beyond’s poor financial performance was released. This placed Arnal in the position of possibly going to prison and/or facing a massive lawsuit that he would probably lose.
SOURCES:
Bed Bath & Beyond CFO faced lawsuit claiming he engaged in ‘pump and dump’ scheme | Daily Mail Online
Bed Bath & Beyond CFO commits suicide by jumping from NYC skyscraper after announcing massive store closures | The Post Millennial
Bed Bath & Beyond CFO falls to his death from New York’s ‘Jenga’ tower – MarketWatch
Bed Bath & Beyond CFO plunges to death at New York’s Jenga tower – reports
Bed Bath & Beyond CFO plunges to death at New York’s Jenga tower: reports | World News,The Indian Express
Bed Bath & Beyond CFO plunges to death at New York’s Jenga tower: reports | World News,The Indian Express
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