Whistleblower Seth Freedman explains the suspicious pattern of trades which led him to raise the alarm guardian.co.uk

Seth Freedman, the whistleblower at the centre of energy market manipulation allegations, has been sacked by his price reporting agency, ICIS Heren.

Freedman's concerns about unusual movements in the wholesale gas trade triggered investigations – which are ongoing – by the Financial Services Authority (FSA), and the energy regulator, Ofgem.

Freedman said his sacking was "classic victimisation and intimidation of a whistleblower".

"[They're] protecting the management at the expense of those lower down the food chain," he said. "I feel victimised for blowing the whistle.

"I was doing the right thing. I was protecting the ICIS brand – when we spot abuse we take it to the regulator. [But] I was treated as if I was the bad guy. It's outrageous."

ICIS said it was forced to remove Freedman because he had lost the trust of price reporting agencies (PRAs) and his colleagues. The company said it had offered Freedman three alternative posts within the wider Reed Business Information publishing house, but he declined all the offers and was fired on 28 December.

"Seth Freedman is no longer employed at ICIS. Reed Business Information offered him three other roles on the same terms and conditions within the company, including one at the New Scientist, but he declined them all," a company spokesman said.

Freedman said the other jobs had "no relevance to my experience or skills". He said his "victimisation" may make other ICIS staff too scared to speak up if they spot wrongdoing at the company, which is part of publishing giant Reed Elsevier.

Freedman's lawyer, Shah Qureshi of Bindmans, said it "beggars belief" that ICIS had dismissed "the very person who raised issues of alleged wrongdoing".

"In his role as a gas price market analyst and guideline price setter he discovered market irregularities and evidence of market manipulation," he said. "He brought those concerns to his employer's attention and when he felt nothing was being done he raised these issues of public importance with the regulators; the FSA and Ofgem."

Qureshi said it was ironic ICIS was claiming Freedman was dismissed due to lack of trust and confidence, given that ICIS had confirmed his dismissal to the media while an appeal was pending. "My client will be considering his legal options," he added.

Freedman joined ICIS as a UK wholesale gas price reporter in January 2012 but raised the alarm about wild gyrations in the unregulated and over-the-counter (OTC) gas market, particularly on 28 September.

He took his concerns about these day-ahead trades to ICIS, who later reported them to Ofgem but, fearing inaction on the issue, he later himself went directly to the FSA in the middle of November.

"Traders have made clear to me that manipulation of gas prices is taking place on a regular basis. They name big companies among those they accuse of trying to rig prices and reap profits. Market participants claim the fixing of prices is an open secret," he said at the time.

But Freedman was also critical of PRAs, saying key benchmark indices they produced in massive UK supply contracts were unreliable, undermined by poorly trained staff and cosy relationships between traders and price reporters.

The investigations by the FSA and Ofgem are expected to continue for months, while the government was quick to state that anyone found guilty of market rigging would be suitably punished.

The big six energy companies have all denied they have been engaged in anything illegal. Citigroup, the only company to confirm it traded at the low price levels that aroused the suspicion of Freedman, has said it was acting in good faith on behalf of an unnamed energy client.