Rio Games employees fired for theft

LONDON — In an embarrassing episode for the host of the next Summer Olympics, 10 employees of Rio de Janeiro's 2016 committee have been fired after being caught stealing computer files from British organizers during the London Games.

British and Brazilian organizers said Friday that the Rio employees, working alongside London staff in the technology department, had downloaded internal documents without authorization. The Brazilians were working with London organizers during the July 27-Aug. 12 games as part of an official "transfer of knowledge program" between Olympic host cities.

"I can confirm there was an incident involving members of the Rio team who accessed and removed files without permission," London spokeswoman Jackie Brock-Doyle said. "We reported it to Rio management. They acted quickly to resolve the issue and return the files."

The Rio committee said the 10 employees were engaging in conduct "contrary to the ethical principles and mutual trust shared by the two organizations."

View the original article here