Case Detail

United States v. Aibel Group Ltd. (S.D. Tex. 2008)


Case Details

  • Case Name
  • United States v. Aibel Group Ltd. (S.D. Tex. 2008)
  • Date Filed
  • 01/05/2007
  • Enforcement Agency
  • DOJ
  • Countries
  • Nigeria
  • Foreign Official
  • Nigerian Customs Officials.
  • Date of Conduct
  • 2001 to 2005
  • Nature of Business
  • Provision of engineering and procurement services and subsea construction equipment for Nigeria’s first deepwater oil drilling operation.
     
  • Influence to be Obtained
  • From at least September 2002 to around April 2005, Aibel Group Ltd. (“Aibel”) and its co-conspirators made payments on at least 61 occasions to Nigerian Customs Service officials through an agent to secure preferential treatment during the customs process.
  • Enforcement
  • On November 21, 2008, Aibel pleaded guilty to both counts of a superseding information charging one count of conspiracy to authorize corrupt payments to Nigerian customs officials and one count of violating the FCPA by authorizing the payment of an invoice, via a phone call from Norway to Houston, for the agent’s earlier payment of approximately $45,454 to Nigerian customs officials.  
     
    In 2007, Vetco Gray Controls Inc., Vetco Gray Controls Ltd., and Vetco Gray U.K. Ltd., then fellow subsidiaries of Vetco International, pleaded guilty to violating the anti-bribery provisions of the FCPA.  At the same time, Aibel Group Ltd. entered into a deferred prosecution agreement relating to the same underlying conduct charged here, but based upon a statement of facts that included a single corrupt payment and did not allege a conspiracy.
     
    On November 21, 2008, Aibel admitted that it was not in compliance with the 2007 deferred prosecution agreement and agreed to pay a $4.2 million fine.  The government consented to the dismissal of the deferred prosecution agreement.
     
  • Amount of the Value
  • Approximately $2.1 million.
  • Amount of Business Related to Payment
  • $10.5 million.
     
  • Intermediary
  • Major International Freight Forwarding and Customs Clearance Company.
  • Total Sanction
  • $ 4,200,000
  • Compliance Monitor
  • No
  • Reporting Requirements
  • No
  • Case is Pending?
  • No

Defendants

Aibel Group Ltd. 

  • Citation
  • United States v. Aibel Group Ltd., No.4:07-cr-00005 (S.D. Tex. 2008).
  • Date Filed
  • 01/05/2007
  • Filed Under Seal
  • No
  • FCPA Statutory Provision
    • Anti-Bribery
    • Conspiracy: Anti-Bribery
  • Other Statutory Provision
  • None
  • Disposition
  • Plea Agreement
  • Defendant Jurisdictional Basis
  • Territorial Jurisdiction
  • Defendant's Citizenship
  • United States
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