
On Friday, the Swiss Federal Criminal Court issued rulings against Trafigura, an oil company, along with a former executive and two accomplices, all of whom were found guilty of bribing a public official in Angola to win trade contracts.
Ruling Details
Judges David Bouverat, Stephan Zenger, and Maric Demont presided over the case, concluding that the three defendants had breached Article 322 of the Swiss Criminal Code, which pertains to bribery.
The sentences handed down varied for each defendant, ranging from 24 to 32 months.
However, a significant portion of these sentences was suspended.
The Trafigura executive received the longest sentence of 32 months, but with 20 months suspended, he will actually spend just 12 months in prison.
Trafigura itself faced criminal liability under Article 102, resulting in a hefty fine of $3.3 million.
Bribery Scheme
The evidence revealed that the executive played a pivotal role in orchestrating the bribery scheme between April 2009 and October 2011, during which nearly $5 million was funneled in cash payments to a public official in Angola.
In return for these illicit funds, the official paved the way for multiple contracts between Trafigura and a state-owned company in Angola.
This arrangement culminated in nine shipping and bunkering agreements worth approximately $145 million.
The fraudulent scheme involved complex layers of intermediary payments.
Money was transferred from the oil giant and its subsidiaries to two shell companies associated with the co-defendants.
These firms then sent the cash either to an offshore account held by the official or directly delivered the cash to him.
Court Criticism and Future Steps
Moreover, the court criticized Trafigura for its insufficient anti-bribery measures, underscoring a lack of appropriate safeguards.
Alongside the $3.3 million fine, the court ordered Trafigura to set aside an additional $145 million for potential future compensation claims by the Swiss government.
This ruling came from the Criminal Chamber of the Swiss Federal Criminal Court, which is the first line of defense in federal corruption matters.
If any party decides to appeal the decision, it will go to the Higher Appeals Chamber of the same court.
Further challenges could escalate to the Federal Supreme Court of Switzerland, potentially prolonging the legal proceedings.
Source: Jurist