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FCPA Sting Operation Results in Conspiracy Charge for Retired U.S. Army Colonel
On August 29, the DOJ announced that it had unsealed a criminal complaint and FBI affidavit charging a retired U.S. Army colonel “for his alleged role in a foreign bribery and money laundering scheme in connection with a planned $84 million port development project in Haiti.” The DOJ alleges that he solicited bribes “from undercover [FBI] agents in Boston who posed as potential investors,” telling the agents “that he would funnel the payments to Haitian officials through a non-profit entity that he controlled . . . in order to secure government approval of the project.” The retired colonel allegedly received a $50,000 payment from the FBI, which he wired to his non-profit organization. While he ultimately used the payment for personal purposes, rather than his promised bribery, he allegedly “intended to seek additional money from the undercover agents to use for future bribe payments in connection with the port project.” The DOJ also alleges that FBI agents intercepted telephone calls where he “discussed bribing an aide to a senior Haitian official by giving him a job on the port development project after he left his position.”
FCPA sting operations are relatively rare. An infamous FCPA sting operation involving Africa resulted in charges for 22 defendants, but it concluded unsuccessfully in 2012 after a series of acquittals and hung juries caused the DOJ to dismiss the remaining indictments.
SFO Director Urges Department to Compete With DOJ on Home Turf
In a September 4 speech, Serious Fraud Office (SFO) Director David Green urged the SFO to lead anti-corruption enforcement efforts against UK-connected companies, warning that “if we take our foot off the pedal . . . , others will fill the void.” Green noted that the DOJ “is not shy about enforcing the [FCPA] against foreign companies,” and emphasized that seven of the top ten highest-dollar FCPA cases since 2008 were brought against non-American companies. Green said that “it is surely right that the UK should lead enforcement in relation to UK companies or companies with strong connections here,” because it not only “demonstrates our commitment to the level playing field,” but it also “ensures that hefty financial penalties go to UK public coffers rather than elsewhere.”
GAO Issues Report on Combating Narcotics-Related Money Laundering in the Western Hemisphere
On September 7, the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) issued a report, Anti-Money Laundering: U.S. Efforts to Combat Narcotics-Related Money Laundering in the Western Hemisphere, detailing activities by the Treasury and State Departments to combat these illicit activities. In conducting the study, GAO reviewed laws, regulations, and budget data, and also conducted interviews with experts and U.S. officials, in order to examine anti-money laundering activities over the period of fiscal years 2011 through 2015. GAO also made site visits to Colombia, Mexico, and Panama, identified as “jurisdictions of primary concern for money laundering” by the State Department. Among other things, the report noted that “State and Treasury allocated about $63 million to support AML-related capacity-building and technical assistance” to fund training and equipment for financial intelligence units employed to detect illicit financial transactions in these countries. The report further provides that many entities are required to report suspicious activities to the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, which was established to collect, analyze, and disseminate “financial intelligence information to combat money laundering.”
FinCEN Releases Advisory Alert for Financial Institutions, OFAC Issues Sanctions Against South Sudanese Government Officials
On September 6, the Treasury Department issued a press release announcing multiple actions taken in response to the “continued deterioration of the humanitarian situation in South Sudan.” Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, Sigal Mandelker, stated, “These actions send a clear message to those enriching themselves at the expense of the South Sudanese people that we will not let them exploit the U.S. financial system to move and hide the proceeds of their corruption and malign behavior.”
Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN). FinCEN issued an advisory (FIN-2017-A004) to financial institutions to address concerns that certain South Sudanese senior political figures may potentially move assets using the U.S. financial system. FinCEN projects that since 2013—when a new political conflict began in Sudan—certain senior political officials from both the government and opposition parties have “engaged in and profited from corrupt practices.” The advisory provides due diligence guidance for U.S. financial institutions, issues a reminder regarding suspicious activity report filing obligations, and warns financial institutions to “assess the risk for laundering of the proceeds of public corruption associated with specific particular customers and transactions.”
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC). Pursuant to Executive Order 13664, which blocks the property of certain persons with respect to South Sudan and authorizes sanctions against persons who threaten the peace, security, or stability of South Sudan, OFAC issued sanctions against three government officials and three entities owned by one of the sanctioned individuals. The identified individuals’ actions include, among other things, (i) “actions or policies that threaten the peace, security, and stability of South Sudan”; (ii) “actions or policies that have the purpose or effect of expanding or extending the conflict in South Sudan or obstructing reconciliation or peace talks or processes”; and (iii) “obstruction of the activities of international peacekeeping, diplomatic, or humanitarian missions in South Sudan, or of the delivery or distribution of, or access to, humanitarian assistance.” The sanctions prohibit any U.S. individual from dealing with the designated entities and individuals, and further states that “all of these individuals’ and entities’ assets within U.S. jurisdiction are blocked.” Additionally, individuals designated under Executive Order 13664 are banned from entry into the U.S.
NYDFS Fines Global Bank Nearly $630 Million for Alleged BSA/AML Compliance Failures
On August 24, the New York Department of Financial Services (NYDFS) announced that it had assessed a nearly $630 million fine against a global bank (Bank) and its New York branch as part of a consent order addressing allegations that the Bank failed to fix “serious” and “persistent” failures in its Bank Secrecy Act and anti-money laundering (BSA/AML) compliance programs. NYDFS claimed in its Notice of Hearing and Statement of Charges (Notice) that these failures “indicate a fundamental lack of understanding of the need for a vigorous compliance infrastructure, and the dangerous absence of attention by [the Bank’s] senior management for the state of compliance at the [Bank’s] New York branch.” NYDFS will move for the penalty at a hearing scheduled for September 27, 2017. According to an order issued that same day, NYDFS expanded its investigation into the alleged misconduct to cover the period between October 1, 2013 through September 30, 2014, and April 1, 2015 through July 31, 2017. Specifically, the violations cited in the Notice include the following:
- 855 “batch-waived” transaction alerts that were improperly “cleared by [New York] Branch staff without review or rationale for the failure to review the alerts” and without written approval of the batch waive process by head office or local management;
- control deficiencies concerning the Bank’s relationship with a Saudi Arabian bank with reported ties to Al Qaeda and the financing of terrorism—transactions with the Saudi Arabian bank comprised approximately 24 percent of the total number of transactions conducted through the New York branch;
- more than 13,000 transactions failed to identify essential information such as originator and beneficiary identities; and
- more than 4,000 transactions were excluded from screening after being included on the Bank’s “good guy list” comprised of customers “who purportedly have been screened and identified as very low risk,” although the investigation identified several parties that had been either “improperly included” or met criteria which warranted screening.
The Bank issued a press release following the announcement, stating its plans to “vigorously contest [the penalty] . . . as being unjustified, capricious, unreasonable, not supported by facts or law and as being time barred.” The Bank claimed it has undergone “sincere and extensive remediation measures” to improve its compliance efforts since NYDFS issued an order in 2015 calling for oversight and improvements to its BSA/AML processes. The Bank expressed its intention to surrender its foreign bank branch license for the New York branch and NYDFS has issued an order to effectuate the surrender by September 23, 2017.
Report: California-Based Ride Sharing Company Facing DOJ Scrutiny
On August 29, the Wall Street Journal reported that a California-based ride sharing company is facing scrutiny from the DOJ, which has taken preliminary steps to investigate potential FCPA violations at the company. The company has expanded into more than 70 countries. A company spokesman confirmed the DOJ’s inquiry. The Wall Street Journal report stated that it was unclear whether DOJ would open a formal investigation.
President Trump Imposes Additional Venezuelan Sanctions
On August 24, President Trump announced the issuance of new sanctions against Venezuela. Executive Order 13808 “Imposing Additional Sanctions with Respect to the Situation in Venezuela,” adds additional restrictions to those declared in Executive Order 13692. The sanctions prohibit transactions related to the following:
- “new debt with a maturity of greater than 90 days” in conjunction with the Venezuelan state-owned oil and natural gas company (state-owned company);
- “new debt with a maturity of greater than 30 days, or new equity, of the Government of Venezuela, other than debt” in conjunction with the state-owned company;
- “bonds issued by the Government of Venezuela prior to the effective date of this order”;
- “dividend payments or other distributions of profits to the Government of Venezuela from any entity owned or controlled, directly or indirectly, by the Government of Venezuela;
- “[t]he purchase, directly or indirectly, by a [U.S.] person or within the [U.S.], of securities from the Government of Venezuela, other than securities qualifying as new debt with a maturity of less than or equal to 90 days [for state-owned company debt] or 30 days [for other Government of Venezuela debt].”
On August 25, OFAC also issued four General Licenses containing additional provisions: (i) General License 1 imposes a wind-down period through September 24, 2017 for contracts and other agreements that were effective prior to the Executive Order's effective date; (ii) General License 2 authorizes certain transactions involving a specifically listed holding company; (iii) General License 3 authorizes dealings in certain specified Government of Venezuela-related bonds that would otherwise be prohibited; and (iv) General License 4 allows new debt transactions related to “the provision of financing for, and other dealings in new debt related to the exportation or reexportation, from the [U.S.] or by a U.S. person . . . of agricultural commodities, medicine, medical devices, or replacement parts and components for medical devices,” provided compliance with the outlined requirements and limitations. OFAC also published answers to several related frequently asked questions concerning the additional sanctions.
OFAC Settles Alleged Iran Sanction Violations with Singapore-Based Oilfield Services Company
On August 24, the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced that it had reached a $415,350 settlement with a Singaporean oilfield services company for an alleged 55 violations of Iran sanctions regulations. OFAC asserted that the company “exported or attempted to export 55 orders of oil rig supplies from the [U.S.] to Singapore and the United Arab Emirates, and then re-exported or attempted to re-export these supplies to four separate oil rigs located in Iranian territorial waters” from approximately October 2011 through February 2013. OFAC alleged that each instance of this conduct, which the company did not voluntarily self-disclose, violated OFAC’s Iranian Transactions and Sanctions Regulations. Had the company not settled, OFAC determined that civil monetary penalties ranged from approximately $923,000 to $13.75 million. In establishing the penalty, OFAC considered that the company: (i) failed to act with an appropriate level of caution by exporting goods to oil rigs located in Iranian territorial waters; (ii) aided the development of Iran's energy resources; (iii) “is a large, sophisticated company with 14 offshore drilling rigs doing business throughout the world;” and (iv) “did not have an OFAC compliance program in place at the time of the transactions.” As for mitigating factors, OFAC determined that: (i) the company has no prior sanctions history with OFAC; (ii) the company took remedial action by implementing an OFAC compliance program; and (iii) the company cooperated with the investigation and entered into a tolling agreement with OFAC.
Swedish Prosecutor Charges Russian Sales Executive with Bribery of Azerbaijan Officials
On Friday, August 18, a Russian employee of a Swedish branch of a Canadian producer of aircraft and train equipment, was charged by a Swedish prosecutor with aggravated bribery. The sales executive is alleged to have bribed a public official in Azerbaijan to win a contract valued over $300 million to supply Azerbaijan with a signaling system for its railways. The executive was first detained in March 2017 and has been held in custody since that time. If convicted, he faces six years imprisonment and deportation.
According to a March 2017 report by the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP), an investigative reporting network spread across Europe, Africa, Asia, and Latin America established in 2006 to conduct transnational investigative reporting to expose global organized crime and corruption, the company was suspected of paying “millions of dollars in bribes to unidentified Azerbaijani officials through a shadowy company registered in the United Kingdom,” which the Swedish prosecutor has characterized as having “no employees or business” but which profited substantially in this deal by purchasing equipment from the company and selling the identical equipment to the company's Azerbaijan affiliate for a profit. According to export records reviewed by the OCCRP, the equipment was delivered directly from the company to Azerbaijan. The report identified the UK intermediary, which, according to an earlier OCCRP report is alleged to have ties to the former president of a russian railways company, and is alleged to have had similar involvement in a contract with the company and Russia.
OFAC Imposes Sanctions on Chinese and Russian Entities and Individuals for Aiding North Korea
On August 22, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced it was imposing sanctions on ten entities and six individuals from China, Russia, Singapore, and Namibia for their roles in supporting North Korea’s efforts to develop weapons of mass destruction, violations of United Nations Security Council Resolutions, and attempted evasion of U.S. sanctions. The sanctions prohibit any U.S. individual from dealing with the designated entities and individuals, and further states that “any property or interests in property of the designated persons in the possession or control of U.S. persons or within the United States must be blocked, and U.S. persons are generally prohibited from dealing with them.” OFAC’s notice identified entities and individuals that (i) assisted already-designated persons supporting North Korea’s nuclear and ballistic missile programs; (ii) dealt in the North Korean energy trade; (iii) facilitated overseas labor to North Korea; and (iv) enabled sanctioned North Korean entities to access the U.S. and international financial systems. Targets include three Chinese coal companies allegedly responsible for importing nearly half a billion dollars' worth of North Korean coal, as well as three Russians individuals and two Singapore-based companies OFAC claimed were involved in providing oil to North Korea.