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Here’s a few selected “Bribery Crimes” committed by US Companies — that they plead Guilty to — to using illegal pay-offs to influence Foreign Government Officials. These are CRIMES under the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA):
SEC Enforcement Actions: FCPA Cases
Enforcement of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) continues to be a high priority area for the SEC. In 2010, the SEC's Enforcement Division created a specialized unit to further enhance its enforcement of the FCPA, which prohibits companies issuing stock in the U.S. from bribing foreign officials for government contracts and other business.
The following is a list of the SEC's FCPA enforcement actions listed by calendar year:
2018
- Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. – The Brazil-based oil-and-gas company agreed to pay $1.78 billion in a global resolution arising out of a massive bribery and bid-rigging scheme. (9/27/18)
- Legg Mason – Agreed to pay more than $34 million to settle charges related to a scheme to bribe Libyan government officials. (8/27/18)
- Credit Suisse Group AG – Agreed to pay more than $30 million to the SEC and a $47 million criminal penalty to resolve charges that the firm obtained investment banking business in the Asia-Pacific region by corruptly influencing foreign officials in violation of the FCPA. (7/5/18)
- Panasonic Corp. – The Japan-based company agreed to pay more than $143 million to resolve FCPA charges involving a lucrative consulting position it offered to a government official at a state-owned airline to induce the official to help its U.S. subsidiary in obtaining and retaining business from the airline. (4/30/18)
- The Dun & Bradstreet Corp. – The company agreed to pay more than $9 million in disgorgement, interest and a civil penalty to resolve FCPA violations stemming from improper payments made by two Chinese subsidiaries. (4/23/18)
2017
- Telia – The Sweden-based telecommunications provider agreed to pay $965 million in a global settlement to resolve violations of the FCPA to win business in Uzbekistan. (9/21/17)
- Halliburton – The company agreed to pay $29.2 million and a former vice president agreed to pay a $75,000 penalty to settle charges related to payments made to a local company in Angola in the course of winning lucrative oilfield services contracts. (7/27/17)
- Michael L. Cohen and Vanja Baros – The former Och-Ziff executives were charged with being the driving forces behind a far-reaching bribery scheme that paid tens of millions of dollars in bribes to high-level government officials in Africa. (1/26/17) NOTE: Och-Ziff and other executives settled charges in 2016. {no not THAT Michael Cohen}
- Cadbury Limited/Mondelez International - The global snacking business agreed to pay a $13 million penalty for FCPA violations occurring after Mondelez (then Kraft Foods Inc.) acquired Cadbury and its subsidiaries, including one in India that proceeded to make illicit payments to obtain government licenses and approvals for a chocolate factory in Baddi. (1/6/17)
[The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) bribery crimes and penalties continue back, well beyond 2000. Hit the link.]
Someone needs to add to FCPA List the Trump Organization offer to the Russian President Putin, of a free $50,000,000 apartment on the top floor for the proposed Moscow Tower project, for Putin’s sign-off on the Project. Two law enforcement officials have confirmed this secret Bribery attempt back in 2015, by the Billionaire so beholden to Putin, he chose to lie about it back then. So indebted, that this one individual is still lying about it today.
Because right-wing Trump Team players have been saying THIS on National Political News shows, falsely and unchallenged:
[...] if those contacts are about building an office building in Moscow and giving the penthouse to Vladimir Putin, people may not like that but it’s not a crime.
abcnews.go.com — Dec 9, 2018
And because people around the water-cooler today are now repeating it, as Fact, — “that if it happened, it was not a crime. It was just business. That’s just what happens overseas.”
Well if average folks were better informed about the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, and the SEC prosecutorial track-record on the subject — they’d know:
That bribing Foreign Officials is not just fine. NO, it a serious Felony, that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) takes very very seriously.
And I would expect they are NOT the only Law Enforcement Agency that does — contrary to what “myths” the Trump enablers out there, are trying like hell to get us all to just believe.
It’s not just Business. It’s a foreign Bribe. And it’s serious Crime. Just ask the SEC.
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One Question: If it was all above-board, then why all the Lies?