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A now-ex-pharma executive at Vertex Pharmaceuticals, Richard Waygood, is facing the wrath of netizens after he was seen brandishing an armband with a Nazi swastika symbol on it during his trip to Las Vegas, Nevada. The incident first came to light on Monday, November 13, 2023, when X user @StopAntisemites shared a post, identifying him with the message:
"Imagine coming to one of the most entertaining places on the planet ... and posing with a a Nazi swastika armband to show the world what a massive bigot you are."
While Richard Waygood's LinkedIn profile was deactivated, an archived copy of the page obtained by @StopAntisemites shows he is a marketing professional based in Zurich, Switzerland. He graduated from The University of St. Gallen and Stockholm School of Economics with a business degree and has been working in the healthcare sector for over 10 years.
In addition to his role as the Associate Director of Geographic Expansion, Distributor, and Expansion Markets at Vertex Pharmaceuticals, Waygood has previously worked at Amgen and Baxter International Inc., in senior positions.
"Richard Waygood behaves way too bad": Internet users slam marketing executive for antisemitic behavior
As the post gained traction, netizens were quick to criticize Richard Waygood and call out his behavior. Many tagged his now-former employer, Vertex Pharmaceuticals, imploring that they fire their executive. Here are some comments seen on X under @StopAntisemites's post:
As more users urged Vertex Pharmaceuticals to fire Richard Waygood, the company immediately took action, and by the next day morning, they shared a post informing everyone that they rejected any form of discrimination and antisemitism.
The post explained that Waygood was working with them via a third party and that he was no longer working with them.
This is not the first time @StopAntisemites has called out people for their racial attacks on Jewish people. On November 14, 2023, they shared a post criticizing a UI/UX professional, Amaury Letort, for his vile antisemitic remarks.
