[U] Unknown To Us -- 'Til Now -- Veltri Was "Ghosted", Last November By New Merck

Here's a nice tibit -- from Forbes' Matt Herper -- it seems Enrico Veltri was "Caspered" by New Merck, right after bust-up time, in November 2009 -- (no surprise, given this history with his new bosses). He has been consulting (presumably outside the company, primarily), since then:

. . . .Enrico P. Veltri, a Schering-Plough vice-president who played the central role in a controversial study of the cholesterol drug Vytorin, has left the company following its acquisition by Merck.

"Since the merger, Rick has consulted for the company," Merck said in a statement. Veltri is listed as an independent consultant in his role as the industry representative on a panel being held by the Food and Drug Administration to examine the safety of GlaxoSmithKline's diabetes drug Avandia. . . .

Veltri's bombastic and sometimes abrasive personality worked against him. In one widely quoted email, members of Veltri's team implored him to remain calm when dealing with a Merck executive, Soren Bo Christiansen, over the timing of the Enhance study.

"Soren is a prick," Veltri responded in an email. "How's that for staying calm. Tell him to f--- off". . . . .

As I've repeatedly written, the vast majority of both legacy Schering-Plough and Merck employees are ethical, hard-working, balanced polite professionals. It only takes a few (Veltri, Cox, Hassan et al.) to ruin the reputation of a whole company.

Do go read all that Matt Herper wrote -- 'tis hilarious (in a tragi-comic sense)!