The Case That Just Keeps On Giving – DOJ Announces Additional Charges In PDVSA Bribery Action Against Employees Of Swiss Wealth Management Firm – Previously Charged FCPA Defendant Files Motion To Dismiss
Several prior posts (see here, here, here and here for instance) have highlighted the clustering phenomenon and how a few discreet instances of alleged bribery yield an inordinate amount of Foreign Corrupt Practices Act enforcement activity against individuals.
One such example is the DOJ’s long-standing enforcement action (charges were first brought in late 2015) in connection with alleged corrupt schemes to secure contracts from Venezuela’s state-owned and state-controlled energy company, PDVSA.
In this recently unsealed indictment, Nervis Villalobos Cardenas (a citizen of Venezuela), Daisy Rafoi Bleuler (a citizen of Switzerland and partner in a Swiss Wealth Management firm), and Paulo Caqueiro Murta (a citizen of Portugal and Switzerland and employee in a Swiss Management firm) were charged with conspiracy to violate the FCPA’s anti-bribery provisions as well as other offenses. In the indictment, various former employees of PDVSA entities (alleged to be “foreign officials”) were also charged with money laundering offenses. As highlighted in this prior post, Villalobos was previously charged with FCPA and related offenses in early 2018.
Issues To Consider From The Deutsche Bank Enforcement Action
This prior post highlighted the SEC’s $16.2 million Foreign Corrupt Practices Act enforcement action against Deutsche Bank – the latest FCPA enforcement action focused on alleged improper internship and hiring practices primarily involving the financial services industry.
This post continues the analysis by highlighting additional issues to consider.
Timeline
The company’s FCPA scrutiny reportedly began in mid-2013. Thus, from start to finish, Deutsche Bank’s FCPA scrutiny lasted an unconscionable six years.
Friday Roundup
Scrutiny alert, the irony of it all, just saying …, not sure why, no more third parties, and for the reading stack. It’s all here in the Friday roundup.
Scrutiny Alerts
AAR Corp.
The company, a provider of aviation services with numerous U.S. government contracts, recently disclosed:
“The Company retained outside counsel to investigate possible violations of the Company’s Code of Conduct, the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, and other applicable laws, relating to the Company’s activities in Nepal and South Africa. Based on these investigations, we self-reported these matters to the U.S. Department of Justice, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the UK Serious Fraud Office. The Company will fully cooperate in any review by these agencies, although we are unable at this time to predict what action, if any, they may take.”
Judge Denies Firtash Motion To Dismiss And In Doing So Disagrees With Second Circuit’s Hoskins Decision
As highlighted in this prior post, in 2014 the DOJ criminally charged various individuals alleging a wide ranging conspiracy to bribe Indian officials to secure mining licenses. Among those charged was Dmitry Firtash, a high-profile Ukrainian businessman.
As highlighted in prior posts here and here, in May 2017 Firtash (and later a co-defendant Andras Knopp) filed motions to dismiss.
Recently, in this opinion U.S. District Court Judge Rebecca Pallmeyer denied the motion to dismiss and as highlighted below, in doing so, disagreed with the Second Circuit’s August 2018 decision in U.S. v. Hoskins (see here and here for prior posts).
Issues To Consider From The Telefonica Brasil Enforcement Action
This previous post went in-depth into the recent $4.1 million FCPA enforcement action against Telefonica Brasil and this post continues the analysis by highlighting additional issues to consider.
What Is The U.S. Interest?
According to the SEC, Telefonica Brasil (a subsidiary of Spanish multinational Telefonica S.A. and the largest telecom company in Brazil with 34,000 employees and $14 billion in revenue) purchased 1,860 World Cup tickets for a total of approximately $5.1 million “for relationship-building activities with strategic audiences.”