The Department of Justice reports that a company has agreed to pay $10 million as part of a deferred prosecution agreement resolving investigations by the DOJ and the Securities and Exchange Commission into Foreign Corrupt Practices Act violations arising from the company’s participation in a corrupt scheme to bribe Japanese government officials. In addition, the company’s former CEO has been indicted on related charges.
According to information from the DOJ and SEC, between 2017 and 2019 a senior company executive authorized about $1.9 million in payments to intermediaries knowing the money would be used to bribe Japanese government officials in an effort to win a bid to open an integrated resort in Japan. The bribes were covered up by entering into sham contracts with consultants and falsely recording the payments as legitimate expenses, including as management advisory fees.
The DOJ states that the appropriate criminal penalty in this case is $54 million but has been lowered due to the company’s financial condition and demonstrated inability to pay the full amount. The company also received credit for its cooperation with the DOJ’s investigation, even though it was “reactive and limited in degree and impact,” as well as its timely remedial measures, which included conducting annual risk assessments, creating an anti-corruption policy and engaging in company-wide training and communications to promote it, transitioning its business model to an industry that presents a lower corruption risk, and reducing its presence in high-risk regions. The company has also agreed to continue to enhance its compliance programs and report on them to the DOJ for three years.
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