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Additional Lighthouses and Buoys Sentence

By on June 28, 2010 in Charles Paul Edward Jumet, FCPA Sentences, John Warwick, Panama, Ports Engineering Consultants Corporation

Last Friday, the DOJ announced (see here) that John Warwick was sentenced to approximately three years in federal prison “for his role in a conspiracy to pay bribes to former Panamanian government officials to secure maritime contracts.” U.S. District Court Judge Henry Hudson also sentenced Warwick to two years of supervised release following his prison term and ordered Warwick to forfeit approximately $330,000 in proceeds from his crime.

In February, Warwick pleaded guilty to a one-count indictment charging him with conspiring to make corrupt payments to Panamanian officials for the purpose of securing business for Ports Engineering Consultants Corporation in violation of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. The business involved contracts to maintain lighthouses and buoys along Panama’s waterways.

This is the same conduct at issue in the prior plea and sentencing of Charles Edward Jumet. (See here for additional posts on this matter). In April, Jumet was sentenced to approximately 7.25 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to two charges – conspiracy to violate the FCPA and making false statements to federal agents. (See here). Even though Jumet’s charges were equal part FCPA and equal part making false statements to federal agents, his sentence was described as the “longest prison term imposed against an individual for violating the FCPA.”

Given that Warwick was charged and pleaded guilty to the same conspiracy as Jumet, it suggests that the FCPA component of Jumet’s sentence was between 3-4 years.

Two-Tiered Justice?

By on April 20, 2010 in Charles Paul Edward Jumet, FCPA Sentences, Panama, Ports Engineering Consultants Corporation

Certain corporations (acting through employees and agents) in certain industries, most often selling certain things, to certain customers can seemingly violate the FCPA’s anti-bribery provisions with very little consequence. In fact, with increasingly frequency, such companies are not even charged with FCPA antibribery violations and/or may not even have to plead guilty to anything. See here for the recent Daimler, here for the recent BAE, and here for the (somewhat) recent Siemens “bribery, yet no bribery” enforcement actions. Sure these companies coughed up hundreds of millions of dollars, in some cases offered up a few subsidiaries to take the fall, but yet were allowed to escape the full legal consequences of their action despite DOJ and SEC allegations that these companies paid hundreds of millions of dollars in bribes to obtain or retain hundreds of millions, and in some cases billions, of dollars of business. The deterrent message in these cases is so strong that the U.S. government continues to do business with these companies – see here for the recent $28 million dollar contract between the U.S. government and a BAE business unit – see here for a general overview of Siemens post-bribery scandal U.S. government contracts.

Charles Paul Edward Jumet of Fluvanna County, Virginia will probably not be getting U.S. government contracts in the near future.

In fact, he probably will not be doing much of anything (other than sitting around) in the near future.

Why?

Because yesterday he was sentenced to approximately 7.25 years in federal prison (see here for the DOJ release).

His crime?

Conspiring to violate the same law that Daimler, BAE, Siemens, its employees, and several other corporations, apparently are immune from violating … the FCPA’s anti-bribery provisions.

Surely, Jumet’s conduct was more egregious than that of Daimler, BAE, Siemens, and others?

Well, not exactly.

Not to make light of his crime, but according to the DOJ, the total amount that Jumet and others paid to Panamanian government officials to receive a lighthouse and buoy contract was approximately $200,000 – an amount that pales in comparison to the hundreds of millions of bribe payments in the above referenced enforcement actions.

Even though Jumet’s sentence is equal part FCPA and equal part making false statements to federal agents, it is not surprisingly being termed the “longest prison term imposed against an individual for violating the FCPA.”

The DOJ release contains the usual get tough language (i.e. “foreign corruption carries with it very serious penalties,” “bribery isn’t just a cost of doing business overseas [… but] a serious crime that the U.S. government is intent on enforcing.”

Serious penalties and intent on enforcing against whom is the question.

The issue is not whether the DOJ was too lenient in the Daimler, BAE, and Siemens case or whether the DOJ was too harsh in the Jumet case.

Rather, the issue is that there appears to be a two-tiered justice system when it comes to FCPA enforcement.

As noted in the DOJ’s release, Jumet’s co-defendant John Warwick, who also pleaded guilty, is scheduled to be sentenced by the same judge on May 14th. (See here for prior posts on this entire enforcement action).

Lighthouses and Buoys – Additional Plea

By on February 11, 2010 in Anything of Value, Charles Paul Edward Jumet, John Warwick, Panama, Ports Engineering Consultants Corporation

The DOJ announced yesterday (here) that John Warwick pleaded guilty to a one-count criminal indictment charging him with conspiracy to pay bribes to former Panamanian officials to obtain contracts to maintain lighthouses and buoys along Panama’s waterways.

For additional posts about this case, including the prior guilty plea of Warwick’s co-conspirator Charles Jumet (see here). Warwick and Jumet are both associated with Virginia-based Ports Engineering Consultants Corporation (PECC).

The indictments against both individuals are substantively similar and involve a rather complex and convoluted way of getting the “thing of value” to the “foreign official.” According to the indictments, Warwick and Jumet designated certain corporate entities as shareholders of PECC and allowed the “foreign officials” to receive dividend payments and bearer shares from these entities.

Lighthouses and Buoys – Part II

By on December 18, 2009 in Charles Paul Edward Jumet, DOJ Enforcement Action, Foreign Official, Individual Enforcement Action, John Warwick, Panama, Ports Engineering Consultants Corporation

Earlier this week, the DOJ announced (see here) the indictment of John Warwick, the former President of Ports Engineering Consultants Corporation. Warwick is charged (see here) with conspiracy to pay bribes to former Panamanian officials to obtain contracts to maintain lighthouses and buoys along Panama’s waterways. The substance of the allegations against Warwick are substantively similar to the previous charges against Warwick’s co-conspirator Charles Jumet (see here for the prior post). As noted in that post, Jumet pleaded guilty.

*****

I hate to be a Grinch this time of year, but why does DOJ continually use the term “foreign government official” in its charging documents when that term/element doesn’t even appear in the FCPA? (see para. 1 of the indictment). For more on the incorrect/inconsistent use of this key FCPA term see here.

Lighthouses and Buoys

By on November 13, 2009 in Anything of Value, Charles Paul Edward Jumet, DOJ Enforcement Action, Individual Enforcement Action, Panama, Ports Engineering Consultants Corporation

Every so often, things sort of appear out of “left field.”

This is not the only blog which covers the FCPA and several law firms keep rolling statistics as to FCPA enforcement actions, indictments, pleas, etc.

Even so, has anyone ever heard of Charles Paul Edward Jumet or Ports Engineering Consultants Corporation?

Forget the indictment (that was apparently filed on November 10th – see here), Jumet pleaded guilty today to conspiring to violate the FCPA (among other charges). See here for the DOJ release.

Get ready to a make flow chart, because the facts are rather confusing.

The big picture, according to the indictment and plea, is that Jumet and others conspired to “pay money secretly to Panamanian government officials in return for awarding Ports Engineering Consultants Corporation (“PECC” – a company organized under the laws of Panama with an office in Virginia) contracts to maintain lighthouses and buoys along Panama’s waterways…” (see indictment p. 4). Jumet, a U.S. citizen, was the VP of PECC and later its President.

The “foreign officials” were: Government Official A (the Administrator of Panama’s National Maritime Ports Authority) (“APN”); Government Official B (a Deputy Administrator and Administrator of APN); and Government Official C (“a very high-ranking executive official of the Republic of Panama”).

According to the indictment, Jumet and others designated “Warmspell Holding Company” and “Soderville Corporation” as shareholders of PECC as a means of giving corrupt payments to the officials in the form of “dividend” payments or “bearer” shares.

According to indictment, Soderville “belonged to Government Official A” and Warmspell “corporate officers were relatives of Government Official B.”

According to the DOJ release, “[a]s part of his plea agreement, Jumet has agreed to cooperate with the Department of Justice in its ongoing investigation.”

Also out of “left-field,” since when did the Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement begin to enforce the FCPA?

Para. 3 of the indictment says that “[i]nvestigation of violations of the FCPA … fall within the jurisdiction of both the [FBI] and the United States Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement.”

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