The editor-in-chief of the German daily
Bild
, Julian Reichelt, targeted by an internal investigation after complaints from several women, has asked to be temporarily removed from his post, the Axel Springer group announced on Saturday.
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"
To allow for clarification and not to burden the editorial staff, he (Julian Reichelt) has asked the board to be temporarily released from office until the allegations have been clarified,
" he said. group owner of the first German daily in a press release, specifying that the request had been "
granted
".
Julian Reichelt is the target of several internal complaints for moral harassment and abuse of authority.
The group decided after these complaints to open an investigation, led by a law firm, into "
possible violations of compliance
" with the values and rules of the newspaper by the editor, 40 years old.
Julian Reichelt "rejects these accusations"
He is suspected, according to an investigation by the weekly
Der Spiegel
, of having promoted interns with whom he had an affair, before dismissing them, or even firing them.
Employees have alerted management for several months, but it was slow to verify the allegations against the all-powerful editor-in-chief of the tabloid, according to the weekly.
Julian Reichelt, at the head of the editors-in-chief of the title, "
rejects these accusations
", specified the group.
"
The investigation is still ongoing,
" said the German group, which does not wish to give "
for the moment details on the procedure and the allegations
".
With around 2 million copies,
Bild
, created in 1952, has focused on news, sports and celebrity news to become Germany's leading daily.