French police arrested five former Ubisoft executives over allegations of sexual harassment.
Per French newspaper Libération, the former Ubisoft heads have been detained for questioning over complaints of widespread sexual misconduct from the Solidaires Informatique union, which previously organized a strike against Ubisoft with the help of the Union of Video Game Workers back in January 2023. Though the executives have only now been arrested, a case looking into their alleged inappropriate activities has been ongoing since 2021, with police reportedly speaking to 50 current and former Ubisoft employees throughout the investigation. The arrest and investigation are being handled by Bobigny’s public prosecutor’s office.
Former Ubisoft chief creative officer Serge Hascoët and former editorial vice president Tommy François were both reportedly included in the list of detained suspects. Hascoët and François stepped down from their respective positions back in 2020 after numerous allegations arose, which claimed the two participated in and actively encouraged a system of sexual harassment and abuse within Ubisoft. French authorities did not disclose the identities of the three remaining suspects.
Ubisoft Executives Face Sexual Harassment Allegations
Allegations against the Assassin’s Creed developer previously made headlines back in 2020, when numerous current and former employees voiced their complaints regarding the inappropriate work culture within the company. The subsequent public outrage from the video game industry forced a number of high-ranking Ubisoft officials to step down from the company. Apart from Hascoët and François, this included the resignations of Ubisoft Canada president Yannis Mallat and creative director Maxime Béland, along with the dismissal of Assassin’s Creed Valhalla creative director Ashraf Ismail. Ubisoft additionally released a public message shortly after the allegations came to light, with the company assuring that it had launched an investigation with the help of external consultants.
“Concerning recent allegations raised against certain Ubisoft team members: We want to start by apologizing to everyone affected by this–we are truly sorry,” the message reads. “We are dedicated to creating an inclusive and safe environment for our teams, players and communities. It is clear we have fallen short of this in the past. We must do better.” Despite promises, A Better Ubisoft–a pro-worker group formed by former and current Ubisoft employees–claimed the company’s management had not met their demands a year after the scandal made headlines, with the ABU slamming the developer for what it believed were insufficient measures to combat the problems facing the company’s work culture.
At the time of writing, none of the arrested former Ubisoft executives have been charged.
Source: Libération
