[April 01, 2013] Graybar sues former executive for taking data [St. Louis Post-Dispatch] Tweet (St. Louis Post-Dispatch (MO) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) April 01--Graybar Electric Co. is suing its former chief financial officer, alleging he improperly took confidential computer files and trade secrets when he resigned and may have given sensitive information to his new employer. The lawsuit, filed Monday in U.S. District Court in St. Louis, says D. Beatty D'Alessandro violated federal and state computer tampering laws and Graybar policies. Clayton-based Graybar, a Fortune 500 distributor of electrical products, is seeking the return of "confidential, proprietary and trade secret data" as well as unspecified punitive damages. A 29-year Graybar employee and former board member, D'Alessandro told the company in December that he was leaving to accept a position as CFO at Univar Inc., a Redmond, Wash.-based distributor of chemical products. The resignation was effective Dec. 31, but D'Alessandro arranged to continue working for Graybar in a limited role through March even though he started his new job in January. The lawsuit says D'Alessandro continued to have access during that time to proprietary and trade secret information, including marketing, sales and financial plans. A forensic analysis of D'Alessandro's computer hard drive just before Christmas showed a "significant amount of document accesses, uploading and downloading" during times he was meeting with Univar personnel, according to the lawsuit. It also said D'Alessandro "may have given sensitive Graybar financial information or information regarding Graybar's relationship with a third party to Univar." D'Alessandro couldn't immediately be reached on Monday. Graybar and Univar declined to comment on the lawsuit. Graybar ultimately terminated D'Alessandro for cause on Feb. 22 -- an action that D'Alessandro claims was wrongful and in violation of a Dec. 10 "bridging agreement" with Graybar, the lawsuit says. The suit asks the court to settle the dispute, which may affect D'Alessandro's entitlement to pension benefits. ___ (c)2013 the St. Louis Post-Dispatch Visit the St. Louis Post-Dispatch at www.stltoday.com Distributed by MCT Information Services [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]