The chain recently laid off 20% of its staff.
Gustavo Arnal, chief financial officer of American retail chain Bed Bath & Beyond, fell to his death from a New York City skyscraper last weekend.
52-year-old Arnal was discovered in an unconscious and unresponsive state outside his apartment building in Tribeca at approximately 12.30pm on Friday afternoon, 2 September.
A spokesperson for the New York Police Department noted that Arnal “appeared to suffer from injuries indicative from a fall from an elevated position”. Arnal was pronounced dead at the scene by emergency services.
According to CNN, it is understood that Arnal took his own life. A law enforcement source told CNN that Arnal’s wife witnessed him leap from the 18th floor of the tower.
No suicide note was found, nor is foul play suspected.
Arnal’s death comes during a particularly difficult time for Bed Bath & Beyond, with the company having previously announced job cuts that will see around 20% of corporate employees laid off. Close to 150 stores are expected to shut down as the chain seeks to stave off bankruptcy.
Arnal was named in a recent class action lawsuit that accused him and other shareholders of taking measures to artificially inflate the price of Bed Bath & Beyond’s stock.
The case, which was filed last month, alleges that Arnal and other defendants “knowing that the information they disclosed was false, took advantage of the inflated stock price and used fraudulent and misleading SEC filings to sell all their BBBY shares and options at artificially inflated prices to unsuspecting and innocent public investors and then retained control of the profits”.
Authorities have noted that the investigation into Arnal’s death is ongoing.
“The entire Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. organisation is profoundly saddened by this shocking loss,” said a company spokesperson on Sunday.
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