Atlanta Bread executive Basil Couvaras plans to return to South Africa to face fraud charges, a spokesperson said.
”Basil is voluntarily going back to South Africa. We are working on the details of when that will occur,” said Jane Langley, spokesperson for Couvaras and his brother, Jerry, who was arrested by South African officials in March.
Jerry Couvaras, president and chief executive of Atlanta Bread, and Basil Couvaras, the chief operating officer, are accused of being involved in investment schemes in which about 2 000 South Africans lost money in the early 1990s.
Beverley Edwards, the prosecutor handling the case, said earlier that US authorities had not moved to apprehend Basil Couvaras as quickly as South African officials would have liked.
Langley said on Monday that no US warrant has been issued for his arrest.
As recently as last week, Basil Couvaras said he had no intention of returning to South Africa. Langley would not comment on what led him to change his mind.
A senior magistrate in Johannesburg issued an arrest warrant for him on May 18.
The Atlanta Bread company was founded in Atlanta in 1993 with one restaurant. It quickly grew into a chain with more than 160 restaurants in 24 states with revenue last year of $215-million. The company has 5 000 employees, though many of the restaurants are franchise-owned. – Sapa-AP