Wal-Mart in Spy Scandal
A state investigator recommended that Wal-Mart's board of directors should open an independent investigation of claims that Wal-Mart spied on shareholders and suppliers. William Atwood, the executive director of the Illinois State Board of Investment, said that Wal-Mart could have avoided the surveillance scandal if they had not declined a proposal from a group of large investors in 2005 to instill an independent committee to review company policies.
Atwood says that "this case personifies why such external insight is required." Currently, the Illinois State Board of Investment owns about 456,000 shares of Wal-Mart stock. John Simley, a spokesperson at Wal-Mart, did not comment on the case.
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