I just do not believe this story. Nobody in the right mind will fire key software engineer 48 hours after system goes live. This is where all the bugs/problems show up and you need all hands on deck to fix them.
Six months after launch when all problems are solved - absolutely, you can fire engineer. 48 hours after launch? absolutely not.
Six months after launch when all problems are solved - absolutely, you can fire engineer. 48 hours after launch? absolutely not.