Libel-tastic, this one is, my friends. Apparently, in the fine tradition of the Phantom, the investment team of Gizmondo is not quite on the up-and-up. Do we know this for sure? Probably not, but the Swedes certainly do. Stefan, a stalwart protector of the world against the encroaching “Manager’s Meatball Special Mafia” was kind enough to translate a Swedish article into our own gentle tongue.
The gist is that the initial investors and the president Stefan “Fat-Stefan” Eriksson are part of the “Lingonberry Boyz” aka the Uppsala-mafia. True, false, we’re used to seeing shady back-door deals in gaming. It’s the new bathtub gin.
The Criminal who became a director/manager
Swedish criminals gets many millions in salaries from computer gaming
company London, four Swedish are top managers in the British billion
kronor (Swedish Krona is a seventh of a USD) Company Gizmondo that
tries to compete with gaming giants Sony and Nintendo. Aftonbladet
(Swedish newspaper) can as of today reveal that three of them has been
sentenced to severe crimes. The previous leader of the criminal gang
Stefan “Fat-Stefan” Eriksson, top manager of Gizmondo has a salary and
bonus over 25 million Kronas (aprox 3,5 millions USD). Stefan
“Fat-Stefan” Eriksson 43 yrs is today written about in international
respect business press. He sees photographed with the Jet Set of
England , and run the Billion Krona company Gizmondo, with companions
Peter Uf, 42 yrs and Johan Enander46 yrs. No one seems to know the
past connection with the organized criminals of Sweden.
They where called the Uppsala-mafia (Uppsala is a town in Sweden)
Link [Aftonbladet – In Swedish]
In early 1990 the three companions got the infamous name “The Uppsala Mafia”. They where sentenced to long punishment in jail in several different trials, one of the crimes was trying to fraud 22 millions Kronas from the Swedish Bank Giro central. Stefan “Fat-Stefan” Eriksson 43 yrs was 1993 and 1994 sentenced to 10 and a half years prison for major economic frauds. His companion Peter Uf, was sentenced to in total 8 and a half years prison. Ulf is today a manager in the Gizmondo organization. Johan Enander, 46, that was called the Uppsala-mafia torpedo got over 6 years prison in different trials. He was sentenced for different crimes as for example physical assault, blackmail etc. In December 2003 he was again sentenced to one and a half years of physical assault of a women. As soon he had served hi punishment he was assigned as Head of security at Gizmondo.
The founder of Gizmondo is the unpunished friend and entrepreneur Carl
Freer, 35 yrs, the Swedes has big plans for the future. The idea is
that they should compete with giants with market leader Gameboy
(Nintendo) and PSP (Sony). The money in this area is astronomic. But
there has been none profit for the new combers. Instead they did a
loss on 1,6 billion Swedish Krona (more than 200 Millions USD). But
the company’s lack of success does not matter when it comes to
salaries and benefits. The manager Stefan “Fat-Stefan” Ericsson got
last year salary and bonus that exceeded 24 millions of Krona, plus a
company car worth 815 000 Krona (aprox 115 000 USD).
