CEO of London 2012 Security Firm G4S Steps Down

Nick Buckles has quit his role as chief executive at G4S, the company who became infamous for their poor handling of the security operation at the London 2012 Olympics.

Buckles earned a basic salary £830,000 ($1.26m) per annum and will leave the world’s largest security company on 31 May. He will be replaced by chief financial officer Ashley Almanza, who has only been at G4S for three weeks. G4S have said they had looked to appoint someone with “with the experience and capabilities” to take on the role of CEO as part of “succession planning processes”..

He has been scrutinised since the Olympics disaster last summer, where G4S did not provide sufficient trained staff and the members of the armed forces were required to make up the numbers. The failure cost the company £88m ($133.5m), a third of annual profits. The chief executive said the operation had become “a humiliating shambles” to MPs, but ignored calls for his resignation.

G4S chairman John Conolly has thanked Buckles for the “massive contribution” he made to the company during his 28 years there.