The FCPA Docket (February 2018)

The following summarizes the “FCPA Docket” for individuals, which includes all known FCPA-related ongoing prosecutions, fugitives, sentencings, and pending appeals.

This information is current as of February 13, 2018. 

FCPA-Related Ongoing Prosecutions 

Uriel Sharef, Herbert Steffen, Ulrich Bock, Stephan Signer and Eberhard Reichert, Carlos Sergi and Miguel Czysch (DOJ | SDNY 11-1056): The DOJ charged the defendants, all former senior executives with or agents of Siemens AG or one of its subsidiaries, on December 13, 2011. Reichert, a former executive of Siemens Business Services, agreed to be extradited to the United States after his September 2017 arrest in Croatia. He pleaded not guilty on December 22, 2017, and is scheduled to stand trial on July 16, 2018. No trial date has been scheduled for the other defendants, who remain at large. As non-U.S. nationals currently living abroad, these defendants will likely require extradition to be tried. Andres Truppel, an additional executive charged alongside these defendants, pleaded guilty on September 30, 2015, and is still awaiting sentencing (see Pending Sentencings below).

Jald Jensen (DOJ | NDOK 12-06): The DOJ charged Jensen, a former Sales Manager for Bizjet International, along with Bernd Kowalewski, the former CEO of Bizjet, on April 5, 2013. Kowalewski, who pleaded guilty in July 2014, was sentenced to time served on November 18, 2014. No trial date is currently scheduled for Jensen, who appears to be living outside of the United States. 

Dmitry Firtash, Andras Knopp, Suren Gevorgyan, Gajebdra Lal, Periyasamy Sunderalingam, and KVP Ramachandra Rao (DOJ | NDIL 13-515): The DOJ charged the defendants, all non-U.S. nationals, under seal on June 20, 2013, and unsealed the charges on April 2, 2014. Firtash, a Ukrainian national, was arrested in March 2014 and released after posting $174 million in bail. According to the indictment, Firtash controls Group DF, a company named, but not charged, along with several other companies reportedly associated with Firtash. The United States sought to extradite Firtash, but had its request rejected by an Austrian court on April 30, 2015. This ruling was overturned on appeal on February 21, 2017, but on December 12, 2017, the Austrian Supreme Court stayed Firtash’s extradition pending its review of the appellate court decision. The other five defendants are at large, and no trial dates are currently scheduled. As non-U.S. nationals currently living abroad, these defendants will likely require extradition to be tried. (Note: Rao, a Member of Parliament in India, has only been charged non-FCPA offenses). 

Lawrence Hoskins (DOJ | DCCN 12-238): The DOJ charged Hoskins, the former Senior Vice-President of Alstom Asia, in a superseding indictment against William Pomponi, the former Vice-President of Regional Sales for Alstom SA’s U.S.-subsidiary, on July 30, 2013. Pomponi pleaded guilty on July 17, 2014, but passed away in 2016 while awaiting sentencing. By contrast, Hoskins has sought to have the charges against him dismissed. Although on December 30, 2014, the Court denied Hoskins’ initial motion to dismiss, on August 14, 2015, the Court agreed to strike the conspiracy count against him on the grounds that Hoskins, a non-U.S. citizen/domestic concern, was not Alstom’s agent and so could not be prosecuted under the FCPA for conduct occurring outside the territory of the United States. On March 16, 2016, the U.S. District Court for the District of Connecticut affirmed its earlier ruling that a non-resident foreign national cannot be charged with conspiracy to violate the FCPA (or with aiding and abetting a violation of the FCPA) unless the government can show that he acted either as an agent of a “domestic concern” or while physically present in the United States. DOJ appealed to the 2nd Circuit on April 4, 2016 (2d Cir. 16-01010). Oral arguments in the case were held on March 2, 2017, but the court has yet to issue a ruling in the matter. The sentencing for the other defendants convicted in connection with this matter has been suspended until the appeal is concluded (see Pending Sentencings below). 

Alain Riedo (DOJ | SDCA 13-3789): The DOJ charged Riedo, the former Vice-President and General Manager of Maxwell Technologies’ wholly owned Swiss subsidiary, on October 15, 2013, and an arrest warrant was issued the same day. No trial date is currently scheduled, with Reido still at large. As a non-U.S. national living abroad, Riedo will likely require extradition to be tried.

Ban Ki Sang (DOJ | SDNY 16-cr-0831), Sang Woo (DOJ | SDNY 17-0139) and Andrew Simon (DOJ | SDNY 17-7717): The DOJ charged Ban, a South Korean construction executive, along with his son Joo Hyun Bahn, a New York commercial real estate broker, and Malcolm Harris, an arts and fashion consultant and blogger, under seal in an indictment on December 15, 2016 (unsealing the charges on January 10, 2017). The DOJ charged Woo and Simon, Manhattan-based commercial real estate brokers, in separate criminal complaints on January 10, 2017, and October 17, 2017, respectively. Woo and Bahn, both South Korean nationals and U.S. permanent residents, were arrested on January 10, 2017, while Harris was arrested on January 13, 2017.  It is not clear when Simon was arrested. Bahn pleaded guilty on January 5, 2018, and his sentencing is set for June 29, 2018 (see Pending Sentencings below). Harris pleaded guilty to a non-FCPA offense on June 21, 2017, and was sentenced on October 13, 2017 (see Recent Dismissals, Sentencings and Denials below). Woo, whose case had been continued until May 12, 2017, is reportedly in the midst of negotiating a potential plea. Simon appeared in court on October 31, 2017, but did not enter a plea and was released on bond. No trial date is currently scheduled in his case. Finally, Ban, a South Korean national, remains at large. As a non-U.S. national living abroad, Ban will likely require extradition to be tried.

Michael L. Cohen and Vanja Baros (SEC | EDNY 17-00430) and (DOJ | EDNY 17-00544): The SEC charged Cohen and Baros, two former Och-Ziff executives, on January 26, 2017. Cohen is a dual U.S. and U.K. national, while Baros is an Australian national living in the United Kingdom. On January 3, 2018, the DOJ then indicted Cohen. No trial dates are currently scheduled on the civil or criminal side.

Joseph Baptiste (DOJ | D Mass 17-10305): The DOJ charged Baptiste, a retired U.S. Army Colonel, under seal on August 28, 2017, and unsealed the complaint on August 29, 2017, the same day Baptiste was arrested. On October 5, 2017, the DOJ issued an indictment against Baptiste that included an additional charge. No trial date is currently scheduled for Baptiste.

Mark Lambert (DOJ | D. Md. 18-0002): The DOJ charged Lambert, the former co-president of a Maryland-based company that transports nuclear materials, under seal on January 10, 2018, and unsealed the 11-count indictment on January 16, 2018.  No trial date is currently scheduled for Lambert.

Petros Contoguris (DOJ | SDOH 17-233): On October 12, 2017, the DOJ indicted Contoguris, the founder and chief executive officer of Gravitas & CIE. International Ltd., for activities related to the Rolls Royce enforcement action.  Contoguris is believed to be outside of the United States. Several other individuals, including James Finley, Keith Barnett, Aloysius Johannes Jozef Zuurhout, and Andreas Kohler, were indicted on related charges and have pleaded guilty (see Pending Sentences section).

Cheikh Gadio (DOJ | SDNY 17-8611) and Chi Ping Patrick Ho (DOJ | SDNY 17-779):  The DOJ charged the Ho, the head of a Hong Kong-based NGO, and Gadio, the former foreign minister of Senegal, under seal on November 16, 2017, and unsealed the complaint on November 20, 2017. Both men were arrested the weekend before the complaint was unsealed. Ho pleaded not guilty on January 8, 2018, while Gadio has not yet entered a plea. No trial date has been set for either man.

Luis Carlos De Leon Perez and Nervis Gerardo Villalobos Cardenas (DOJ | SDTX 17-514): The DOJ indicted De Leon and Villalobos, both former employees of Petroleos de Venezuela S.A. (PDVSA), on August 23, 2017, and unsealed the indictment on February 12, 2018. De Leon and Villalobos were arrested in Spain and are currently awaiting extradition to the United States. Co-defendants Cesar David Rincon Godoy, Rafael Ernesto Reiter Munoz, and Alejandro Isturiz Chiesa were all charged with non-FCPA offenses.

FCPA-Related Fugitives

Han Yong Kim  (DOJ | CDCA 09-77): The DOJ charged Kim, the former president of CCI’s Korean office, on April 8, 2009. Kim, a non-U.S. national, has been challenging his fugitive status in an attempt to contest his indictment without surrendering to U.S. authorities. The Ninth Circuit rejected his challenge in April 2014. The South Korean government has reportedly refused requests to extradite Kim because it does not consider the individuals Kim is accused of bribing to be public officials.   

Washington Vasconez Cruz, and Cecilia Zurita, (DOJ | SDFL 09-21010): The DOJ initially charged Cruz, and Zurita, executives with the telecommunications companies Uniplex Telecom Technologies and Cinergy Telecommunications, in 2011, and issued a superseding indictment in 2012. Cruz and Zurita were declared fugitives on March 7, 2013, along with a third defendant, Amadeus Richers, who was arrested on February 23, 2017 (see Recent Dismissals, Sentencings and Denials below). Numerous other individuals have been convicted in connection with this matter, including former co-defendants Joel Esquenazi and Carlos Rodriguez, who unsuccessfully appealed their 2011 convictions to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit (see Pending Appeals below).

Enrique Faustino Aguilar Noriega (DOJ | CDCA 10-1031): Noriega was the Director of Grupo Internacional de Asesores SA, a sales agent hired by Lindsay Manufacturing. The DOJ charged Noriega in 2010, along with Linsday Manufacturing and several other defendants. While Linsday Manufacturing and all the other individuals charged in connection with this case have had the charges against them dropped, Noreiga’s case is still listed as open. While the United States has reportedly ended its efforts to extradite Noriega, he remains a fugitive. 

James Tillery (DOJ | SDTX 08-22): The DOJ charged Tillery, a former executive for Willbros International, in 2008. Tillery was reportedly arrested in Nigeria in 2010, but immigration officials prevented the FBI from extraditing him without proper documentation. A Nigerian court later found the initial arrest of Tillery to be illegal and ordered him released. Nigerian police, however, reportedly refused to comply with this request. The status of U.S. efforts to extradite Tillery is unclear. Tillery remains a fugitive.   

Edgar Valverde Acosta (DOJ | SDFL 06-20797): The DOJ charged Acosta, the President of Alcatel de Costa Rica and Senior Country Officer for Alcatel Lucent SA in Central America, in 2006. Acosta is considered a fugitive. 

Victor Kozeny (DOJ | SDNY 05-518): The DOJ charged Kozeny, a Czech-born investor, in 2005. The United States attempted to extradite Kozeny from the Bahamas for years; however, the Bahamas’ court of last resort, the U.K. Privy Council, rejected the extradition request on March 28, 2012. Kozeny remains a fugitive.  

Pablo Barquero Hernandez (DOJ | WDMO 01-190): The DOJ charged Hernandez, a former employee of Owl Securities and Investment, in 2001. Hernandez is considered a fugitive.   

Joaquin Pou (DOJ | SDFL 89-802): The DOJ charged Pou, a former agent for AEA Aircraft Recovery, in 1989. Pou is considered a fugitive. 

Ricardo Beltran and Mario Gonzalez (DOJ | SDTX 82-224): The DOJ charged Beltran and Gonzalez, both associated with Grupo Delta, in 1982. Beltran and Gonzalez are considered fugitives. 

FCPA-Related Pending Sentencings

Andres Truppel (DOJ | SDNY 11-1056): The DOJ charged Truppel, the former Chief Financial Officer of Siemens Argentina , on December 13, 2011, alongside several other former senior executives with or agents of Siemens AG or one of its subsidiaries (see Ongoing Prosecutions above). After initially challenging the DOJ’s attempts to extradite him, Truppel pleaded guilty on September 30, 2015. His sentencing date, previously set for April 14, 2017, was delayed, reportedly due to Truppel’s ill health, and does not appear to have been re-scheduled.

Daren Condrey (DOJ | DCMD 15-336): The DOJ charged Condrey, the Principal of Transport Logistics International, on June 16, 2015. Condrey pleaded guilty to the FCPA-related charges on June 17, 2015. Two of Condrey’s co-conspirators, Vadim Mikerin (the former director of Tenex, a subsidiary of Russia’s State Atomic Energy Corporations) and Boris Rubizhevsky (a consultant to Mikerin) also pleaded guilty to related money-laundering counts last year, though neither was charged under the FCPA. Condrey’s sentencing was set for June 1, 2017. Numerous documents have been filed under seal since that date.

Ng Lap Seng and Jeff C. Yin (DOJ | SDNY 15-706): The DOJ charged Macau billionaire Ng and his assistant Yin with FCPA counts in a second superseding indictment on November 22, 2016. The original indictment charged Ng and Yin, alongside two other defendants, with domestic bribery, money laundering, and tax offenses on October 20, 2015. A superseding indictment then charged Ng and Yin with an additional conspiracy count on June 30, 2016, before the filing of the second superseding indictment. Yin pleaded guilty on April 7, 2017, and his sentencing is set for February 28, 2018. Ng was convicted on July 27, 2017, and his sentencing is set for March 23, 2018. One alleged recipient of bribes, the former president of the United Nations General Assembly John W. Ashe, passed away in 2016, resulting in the dismissal of the related non-FCPA charges against him. Another alleged recipient of the bribes, former deputy U.N. ambassador to the Dominican Republic Francis Lorenzo, pleaded guilty to non-FCPA charges in March 2016, and he is set to be sentenced on September 13, 2018.

Anthony Mace and Robert Zubiate (DOJ | SDTX 17-618 and 17-591): The DOJ filed criminal informations against Zubiate and Mace on October 6, 2017, and October 19, 2017, respectively. Zubiate, Sales and Marketing Director for SBM’s Houston units, pleaded guilty on November 6, 2017, while Mace, SBM’s Chief Executive Officer, pleaded guilty on November 9, 2017. Both men are scheduled to be sentenced on April 12, 2018.

Jeffrey Chow (DOJ | EDNY 17-466): The DOJ unsealed charges against Chow, a former lawyer for Keppel Offshore & Marine Ltd, on December 21, 2017. Chow pleaded guilty on August 29, 2017, and agreed to cooperate in the DOJ’s efforts to prosecute Keppel Offshore and certain former company executives. Chow’s sentencing is set for May 2, 2018. 

Colin Steven (DOJ | SDNY 17-788): The DOJ filed a criminal information against Steven, a former Embraer sales vice-president, on December 21, 2017. Steven pleaded guilty the same day, and his sentencing is scheduled for June 21, 2018.

Joo Hyun Bahn (DOJ | SDNY 16-0831): The DOJ charged Bahn, a New York commercial real estate broker, under seal in an indictment on December 15, 2016 (unsealing the charges on January 10, 2017).  He was charged alongside several other individuals in connection with an effort to bribe officials in Vietnam, including Malcolm Harris, an arts and fashion consultant and blogger (see Recent Dismissals, Sentencings and Denials below), Ban ki Sang, a South Korean construction executive and Bahn’s father, and Sang Woo and Andrew Simon, Manhattan real estate brokers who were each charged in separate criminal complaints (see Ongoing Prosecutions above). Bahn, a South Korean national and U.S. permanent resident, was arrested on January 10, 2017. He pleaded guilty on January 5, 2018, and his sentencing is set for June 29, 2018.   

Roberto Enrique Rincon-Fernandez  and Abraham Jose Shiera Bastidas (DOJ | SDTX 15-654): The DOJ charged Rincon and Bastidas, each the owner (together with others) of several closely held oil-related companies, on December 10, 2015. The defendants are among numerous individuals charged in connection with a scheme to scheme to corruptly secure contracts from Venezuela’s state-owned and state-controlled energy company, PDVSA (see several other listings both in Ongoing Prosecutions and in Pending Sentencings). Rincon pleaded guilty to both FCPA-related and non-FCPA charges on June 16, 2016. Bastidas pleaded guilty to FCPA-related and non-FCPA charges on March 22, 2016. Sentencing for both defendants is set for August 23, 2018. Charles Quintard Beech (DOJ | SDTX 17-00006) and Juan Jose Hernandez-Comerma (SDTX 17-00005): The DOJ charged Beech and Hernandez-Comerma, two executives from U.S.-based energy companies on January 4, 2017, in connection with the PDVSA-related bribery scheme (see several other listings both in Ongoing Prosecutions and in Pending Sentencings). Beech and Hernandez-Comerma pleaded guilty on January 10, 2017.  Sentencing for both men is set for August 23, 2018.

Moises Abraham Millan Escobar  (DOJ |SDTX 16-009): The DOJ filed a criminal information against Escobar, an employee of Abraham Jose Shiera Bastidas, on January 7, 2016, in connection with the PDVSA-related bribery scheme (see several other listings both in Ongoing Prosecutions and in Pending Sentencings). Escobar pleaded guilty on January 19, 2016, but the plea agreement remains under seal. On August 30, 2016, the Court entered a $533,578 monetary judgment against Escobar, while sentencing in the case is scheduled for August 23, 2018.

Fernando Ardila Rueda (DOJ | SDTX 17-515): The DOJ filed a criminal information against Rueda, part owner of several Florida-based businesses, on August 24, 2017, in connection with the PDVSA bribery scheme (see several other listings both in Ongoing Prosecutions and in Pending Sentencings).  Rueda pleaded guilty on October 11, 2017, and his sentencing is scheduled for August 23, 2018.

David Rothschild (DOJ | DCCN 12-223): The DOJ charged Rothschild, the former Vice President of Sales of Alstom USA, on November 2, 2012. Rothschild pleaded guilty to the FCPA-related charges on that same day, but his settlement was not unsealed until April 15, 2013. His sentencing has not yet been scheduled, presumably pending the outcome in the Hoskins’ prosecution (see Ongoing Prosecutions above). 

James Finley, Aloysius Johannes Jozef Zuurhout, Keith Barnett, and Andreas Kohler (DOJ | SDOH 17-160, 17-122, 16-248, and 17-113): The DOJ charged the defendants, three of which are former Rolls-Royce employees, under seal on July 21, 2017, June 9, 2017, December 20, 2016, and June 6, 2017, respectively, and unsealed the charges on November 7, 2017. Finley, a former senior executive in energy at Rolls-Royce, pleaded guilty on July 28, 2017. Zuurhout, a former energy sales employee at Rolls-Royce, pleaded guilty on June 13, 2017. Barnett, a former regional director in energy at Rolls-Royce, pleaded guilty on December 20, 2016. And Kohler, a managing director at an unnamed international engineering and consulting firm, pleaded guilty on July 20, 2017. Sentencing dates for these four defendants have not been set. Another individual, Petros Contoguris, was also indicted but has not entered a plea (see Ongoing Prosecutions above).

FCPA- Related Pending Appeals

Dmitrij Harder (DOJ | EDPA 15-1; 3rd Cir. 17-2698): The DOJ charged Harder, the former owner and president of the Chestnut Group, on January 6, 2015, and then filed a superseding indictment on December 15, 2015. Harder pleaded guilty to FCPA-related charges on April 18, 2016. On July 18, 2017, Harder was sentenced to 5 years in prison. Despite waiving part of his right to appeal, Harder appealed to the Third Circuit on August 7, 2017. In September, the DOJ filed a motion requesting enforcement of the waiver.

Recent FCPA-Related Dismissals, Sentencings and Denials

Victor Hugo Valdez Pinon and Douglas Ray (DOJ | SDTX 16-409), and Daniel Perez and Kamta Ramnarine (DOJ | SDTX 16-1164): The DOJ filed a criminal complaint against Pinon, an agent of “Aviation Corporation A,” on August 16, 2016 and a criminal information against Ray, President of  “Aviation Corporation A,” on September 15, 2016.  The DOJ filed criminal informations against Perez, the Director of Maintenance for Hunt Pan Am Aviation, and Ramnarine, an employee of Hunt Pan Am Aviation, on August 15, 2016.  Thereafter, the DOJ filed a criminal information against Pinon on October 17, 2016. Pinon pleaded guilty on October 26, 2016, and was sentenced to a year and a day in prison and restitution of $90,783.50 on February 23, 2017.  Ray pleaded guilty on October 28, 2016, and was sentenced to eighteen months and restitution in the amount of $589,698.87 on March 30, 2017. Perez and Ramnarine pleaded guilty on November 2, 2016, and each was sentenced to three years’ probation on February 2, 2017.

Elek Straub, Andras Balogh, and Tamas Morvai (SEC | SDNY 11-9645): The SEC charged Straub, Balogh and Morvai, all former executives of Magyar Telekom, on December 29, 2011. The three defendants lost an initial motion to dismiss the charges against them in February 2013. Following discovery by the parties, the Court considered and rejected a variety of additional motions for summary judgment filed by the defendants on grounds relating to personal jurisdiction and the statute of limitations. Morvai eventually settled with the SEC on February 15, 2017, agreeing to pay a $60,000 penalty without admitting or denying the charges. On April 24, 2017, Straub and Balogh agreed to pay civil penalties in the amount of $250,000 and $150,000, respectively, also without admitting or denying the charges. Both men are also barred for 5 years from serving as an officer or director of any SEC-registered public company.

Samuel Mebiame (DOJ | EDNY 16-627):  The DOJ charged Mebiame, the son of a former Prime Minister of Gabon, on August 12, 2016. Mebiame pleaded guilty on December 9, 2016. He was sentenced to 24 months in prison on May 31, 2017.

Jeannot Lorenz (SEC | Admin. File No. 3-18080): On July 27, 2017, the SEC announced that oilfield services company Halliburton Company agreed to pay more than $29.2 million to settle allegations that it violated the FCPA’s books-and-records and internal-accounting-controls provisions in connection with its operations in Angola. In connection with the settlement, former company vice president Lorenz consented to a civil penalty of $75,000 for his alleged role in the misconduct.

Frederic Pierucci (DOJ | DCCN 12-238): The DOJ charged Pierucci, the former Vice-President of Global Sales for Alstom USA, on November 27, 2012. Pierucci pleaded guilty on July 29, 2013, and he was sentenced to 30 months in prison on September 25, 2017.

Amadeus Richers (DOJ | SDFL 09-21010): The DOJ initially charged Richers, an executive with the telecommunications companies Uniplex Telecom Technologies and Cinergy Telecommunications, on July 12, 2011, and issued a superseding indictment on January 19, 2012. Richers was arrested on February 23, 2017, pleaded guilty on July 19, 2017, and was sentenced to time served on September 27, 2017, and ordered to pay $100.  Richers was originally indicted alongside Washington Vasconez Cruz and Cecilia Zurita, both of whom were declared fugitives on March 7, 2013 (see FCPA-Related Fugitives above). 

Malcolm Harris (DOJ | SDNY 16-cr-0831): The DOJ charged Harris, an arts and fashion consultant and blogger, under seal in an indictment on December 15, 2016 (unsealing the charges on January 10, 2017).  He was charged along with Joo Hyun Bahn, a New York commercial real estate broker (see Pending Sentencings above), Ban ki Sang, a South Korean construction executive, and Sang Woo and Andrew Simon, Manhattan real estate brokers who were each charged in separate criminal complaints (see Ongoing Prosecutions above). Harris was arrested on January 13, 2017, pleaded guilty to a non-FCPA offense on June 21, 2017, and was sentenced on October 5, 2017 to 42 months.  

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Marc Alain Bohn is a contributing editor of the FCPA Blog and an editor of Miller & Chevalier’s FCPA Winter Review 2018. Christine Ciambella is a Librarian at Miller & Chevalier.