The Fugitive Report 2010

Frerik Pluimers, the only FCPA fugitive with his own wanted poster.About a year ago, we compiled our original list of fugitives — people facing FCPA-related criminal charges but still at large.

Since then, one of the twelve was extradited back to the U.S. and has pleaded guilty, three are still fighting extradition, one was reportedly arrested abroad and his status is unclear, and the rest are still at large.

There are two new names — one of whom has been extradited and is facing trial, and one who’s at large.

They’re all men. And only one — Ken Tillery — has held a U.S. passport.

Here they are:

Extradited:

• Ousama Naaman, Canadian and Lebanese, agent for U.S. chemical company Innospec. Indicted August 2008; arrested July 30, 2009 in Frankfurt, Germany; extradited to the U.S. He pleaded guilty in June to criminal FCPA and conspiracy charges. He’s scheduled to be sentenced in federal court in Washington, D.C. on December 19, 2010. He faces up to ten years in prison but hopes to serve his time in a Canadian jail.

• Flavio Ricotti, Italian, a former executive for Control Components Inc. Indicted April 2009; extradited in July 2010 from Germany. He’s charged with one count of conspiracy to violate the FCPA and the Travel Act, one count of violating the FCPA, and three counts of violating the Travel Act.

Fighting extradition:

• Jeffrey Tesler, British, intermediary for Kellogg Brown & Root (KBR). Indicted February 2009; arrested March 5, 2009 in London, England. Now in the U.K. A judge in London in March ruled that Tesler should be extradited to the U.S. to face trial. His lawyers said he plans to appeal, which involved a lengthy process.

• Wojciech Chodan, British, salesman for a KBR affiliate. Indicted 2009. Now in the U.K. A judge in London said in April that he should be extradited to Texas to face trial.

• Viktor Kozeny, Czech-born, Irish passport, president and chairman of Oily Rock Group Ltd. Indicted 2005. Now in the Bahamas. In January this year, the Bahamas court of appeal continued to block his extradition to the U.S.

At large:

• Edgar Valverde Acosta, Costa Rican, Alcatel’s former senior country officer there. Superseding indictment issued March 2007. Last known location: Costa Rica.

• Ricardo G. Beltran, Mexican, also associated with Grupo Delta. Indicted 1982. Last known location: Mexico.

• Rami Dotan, Israeli, air force officer. Indicted 1994. Last known location: Israel. The brigadier-general in charge of Israeli air force procurement was court martialed in Israel in 1991 and convicted along with two others of bribery, fraud, and theft for skimming at least $10 million from jet engine contracts with General Electric in the U.S. He was demoted to private and sentenced to 13 years’ imprisonment. Released in 2003.

• Mario S. Gonzalez, Mexican, associated with Grupo Delta, a Mexican corporation acting as intermediary to Pemex. Indicted 1982. Last known location: Mexico.

• Pablo Barquero Hernandez, Costa Rican, employed by Owl Securities and Investment Ltd. Indicted 2001. Last known location: Costa Rica.

• Harold Katz, an Israeli and U.S. citizen, Israeli lawyer. Indicted 1994 (with Rami Dotan, above). Last known location: Israel.

• Enrique Faustino Aguilar Noriega, Mexican, charged in an eight-count superseding indictment in 2010 with conspiracy to violate the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, four substantive FCPA violations, money laundering conspiracy, and money laundering. Last known location: Mexico.

• Frerik Pluimers, Dutch, chairman, president and CEO of Saybolt International. Indicted 1998. Last known location: the Netherlands.

Status unclear:

• James “Ken” Tillery, American, executive of Willbros International. Indicted 2008. Nigerian news sources in August said Tillery was seized by the American FBI in Lagos and would be returned to the U.S. Reports then said the Nigerian high court had halted the extradition for an indeterminate period because due process wasn’t followed. Tillery has allegedly gained Nigerian citizenship. Last known location: presumed to be Nigeria.