Jeff Jervik, owner and president of Papa John's Pizza Hawaii, will immediately take over as executive vice president for operations for embattled snack maker Krispy Kreme Doughnuts Inc., the companies said yesterday.

Jervik will continue his Papa John's ownership and said in a statement that "someday I will return home to Hawai'i and my Papa John's family."

Quon Nguyen has been elevated to the position of vice president and will be responsible for day-to-day operations of Papa John's Pizza Hawaii, which is a franchise of Papa John's Pizza Inc.

Jervik said he did not want to comment beyond the company's written statement. Nguyen did not return telephone calls seeking comment.

At Winston-Salem, N.C.-based Krispy Kreme, Jervik will be responsible for all company-owned operations, franchisee operations and wholesale operations, according to the company. Jervik will report to Steve Panagos, president and chief operating officer of Krispy Kreme.

Also yesterday, Krispy Kreme, which is under a federal accounting probe, said it hired an executive search firm to find a permanent replacement for Chief Executive Officer Stephen Cooper.

Cooper, a turnaround specialist hired as interim chief in January, remains at the company, said Laura Smith, an outside spokeswoman for Krispy Kreme.

Cooper, chairman of Kroll Zolfo Cooper LLC in New York, and Panagos, a Kroll managing director, have run Krispy Kreme since the ouster of Scott Livengood after a federal investigation forced the company to restate earnings. Cooper was hired in January at the rate of $760 an hour to stem a decline in sales and restructure Krispy Kreme's finances.

The company's shares have plunged 92 percent since peaking in August 2003. The shares declined 51 cents, or 11 percent, yesterday to $4.05 in New York Stock Exchange composite trading. Yesterday's announcement was released after regular markets had closed.

Before coming to Hawai'i, Jervik served as national vice president of operations for Pizza Hut Inc., where he was responsible for the operations of more than 1,000 Pizza Hut restaurants with $800 million in sales and more than 25,000 employees.

He retired from Pizza Hut to teach elementary school then moved to Hawai'i in 1998 with his wife, Lorene, who was born and raised in the Islands, according to Papa John's statement.

Jervik expanded Papa John's in Hawai'i from inception to its current 17 O'ahu locations with more than 350 employees.

Krispy Kreme faces several lawsuits, including one filed this month by two partners in Los Angeles-based Great Circle Family Foods LLC that claims Krispy Kreme tried to force their company into bankruptcy. The largest Krispy Kreme franchisee also claimed company executives misappropriated marketing money and billed for phony charges.

Krispy Kreme has said it would "vigorously" defend itself against the charges.

In October 2004, a special committee of independent directors began investigating issues raised after a Securities and Exchange Commission inquiry and by the company's auditors about accounting and financial statements.

The committee reported in August that most of the blame for the snack maker's financial woes fell on Livengood and ex-Chief Operating Officer John Tate, who sought to "manage earnings" to meet Wall Street's expectations.

The SEC is investigating the company's repurchase of franchises and the earnings warnings in May 2004 that began the company's swoon.

The Associated Press and Bloomberg News Service contributed to this report.