LOS ANGELES, United States — American Apparel Inc., whose controversial founder was ousted last year for alleged misconduct, said the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has begun a probe into the company's handling of the matter.

The clothing chain learned on Feb. 5 that the SEC had issued a formal order of investigation into the departure of Chief Executive Officer Dov Charney, according to a filing the company posted Wednesday. The review, a fact-finding inquiry to figure out if the law was violated, won’t be public, said American Apparel, which pledged to cooperate with regulators.

The probe is the latest development in a nine-month saga that began in June when the Los Angeles-based company first suspended Charney. The board alleged that he violated sexual harassment policies and misused funds. Charney was ultimately fired in December after an outside firm investigated the matter. His lawyer has called the allegations “baseless.”

Since Charney’s suspension, he has been pushing to get his job back. His efforts included a deal last year with hedge fund Standard General that Charney later said backfired.

He borrowed funds from the firm to increase his American Apparel stake to 43 percent of outstanding shares, agreeing to share voting rights in the process. Standard General also pledged to pump $25 million of financing into American Apparel.

But Standard General didn’t reinstate Charney at the clothing chain. Although the board offered him a deal to stay on as an adviser, he turned down the proposal because of concerns that Standard General had too much sway over the company, people familiar with the matter have said.

After his dismissal in December, Charney said that the hedge fund double-crossed him.

“I gave them my entire life’s work and they agreed to put me back in,” he said. “They betrayed me.”

By Nick Turner. Editor: Niamh Ring.