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British firm fined for corruption | British firm fined for corruption |
(41 minutes later) | |
A British construction firm has been ordered to pay almost £5m after pleading guilty to overseas corruption and breaching UN sanctions. | |
Mabey & Johnson tried to influence officials in Jamaica and Ghana when bidding for public contracts. | Mabey & Johnson tried to influence officials in Jamaica and Ghana when bidding for public contracts. |
It also paid money to Saddam Hussein's Iraq regime, violating the terms of the UN oil-for-food programme. | It also paid money to Saddam Hussein's Iraq regime, violating the terms of the UN oil-for-food programme. |
The Reading-based bridge builder admitted its wrongdoing to the Serious Fraud Office. | |
The firm secured contracts worth £60m by bribing foreign politicians and other officials. | |
A judge at London's Southwark Crown Court on Friday fined the firm £3.5m. | |
It was also ordered to pay a £1.1m confiscation order and £350,000 in prosecution costs. | |
In addition the company has made £1,413,611 available as reparations to Ghana, Jamaica and Iraq. | In addition the company has made £1,413,611 available as reparations to Ghana, Jamaica and Iraq. |
'Deeply incriminating' | |
Sentencing, Judge Geoffrey Rivlin QC said the "unusual case" came to light after five of the company's directors stepped down and the new board decided to "dramatically" turn itself in. | |
It strikes at the heart of the government's policy not to allow the Iraqi government funds which could be used for any purposes other than those set out Judge Geoffrey Rivlin QC | |
It later handed over "deeply incriminating" documents detailing its bribery and "sanctions-busting". | |
The firm therefore deserved "recognition and approval" for its efforts to put matters right. | |
He said he recognised the company had taken extensive steps to distance itself from its criminal past and ensure there was no repetition. | |
He wanted to ensure any penalties imposed would not prevent the company "continuing in business and giving employment to very many people and bringing further significant revenue into this country". | |
Following extensive discussions with the Serious Fraud Office (SFO), the firm pleaded guilty to two charges of conspiracy to corrupt and one charge of breaching UN sanctions on Iraq. | |
The use of the 'white man's handshake' is extensive in building trust and confidence before any contract is concluded Mabey & Johnson memo | |
The judge said the company had enjoyed "extensive commercial interests" in Iraq until it invaded Kuwait in 1990. | |
The UN retaliated against Iraq with a trade embargo, but later relented by easing restrictions with the oil-for-food programme, established to limit the humanitarian impact of the sanctions. | |
The judge said that when the company's "kickback policy" emerged, it "seriously misled a highly reputable firm of solicitors" to cover up its behaviour. | |
"In my view this corruption and this sanctions-busting, albeit some time ago, is the much more serious of the offences," he said. | |
"It strikes at the heart of the government's policy not to allow the Iraqi government funds which could be used for any purposes other than those set out." | |
'White man's handshake' | |
The court heard that altogether the firm had parted with pay-outs totalling £1m. | |
It heard that Mabey & Johnson first started paying backhanders in Jamaica in 1993. | |
As the years passed, its "culture" of bribery spread to Ghana and other countries including Madagascar, Angola, Mozambique and Bangladesh. | As the years passed, its "culture" of bribery spread to Ghana and other countries including Madagascar, Angola, Mozambique and Bangladesh. |
In a memo about Bangladesh, one of the firm's directors spoke about the need to develop "close personal relationships". | |
It added: "The use of the 'white man's handshake' is extensive in building trust and confidence before any contract is concluded." | |
John Hardy QC, one of the SFO prosecutors, said the firm had agreed to an internal compliance programme by an SFO-approved independent monitor to ensure bribes remained a practice of the past. |