Swedish Telecommunications company Ericsson has agreed to pay a $206 million penalty and at the same time pleaded guilty for violating a 2019 agreement that demanded it to properly and accurately disclose information on its activities in Iraq, China, and Djibouti.
According to the Department of Justice (DoJ) Ericsson had negotiated a Deferred Prosecution Agreement (DPA) but violated the agreement’s cooperation and disclosure requirements.
“Based on the same underlying criminal conduct that gave rise to the DPA, Ericsson will plead guilty to engaging in a long-running scheme to violate the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) by paying bribes, falsifying books and records, and failing to implement reasonable internal accounting controls in multiple countries around the world. “
Assistant Attorney General Kenneth said that the company had earlier agreed with all provisions of the agreement, only to backtrack along the way.
“Instead of honoring that commitment, Ericsson repeatedly failed to fully cooperate and failed to disclose evidence and allegations of misconduct in breach of the agreement. As a result of these broken promises, Ericsson must plead guilty to two criminal offenses and pay an additional fine,” he said.
The company will be required to serve a probation term through June 2024, and agree to a one-year extension of an independent compliance monitor, the department added.
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