American defense firm RTX will pay close to $1 billion to resolve allegations that it tried to defraud the U.S. government and committed violations of defense export control regulations and the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, DOJ and the SEC said Oct. 16. The company agreed to enter into two deferred prosecution agreements to settle the claims, which included Raytheon’s alleged failure to report bribes in export licensing applications and its submission of false information to the U.S. as part of multiple foreign military defense contracts.
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Womenswear company Alexis will pay nearly $7.7 million to settle a whistleblower False Claims Act case, which alleged that the company underpaid customs duties on its apparel imports, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida announced Aug. 9.
Wisconsin companies Precision Cable Assemblies and Global Engineered Products, along with their chief executives Ryan Schmus and Richard Horky, paid more than $10 million to settle charges they avoided millions of dollars in customs duties on Chinese goods, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Wisconsin announced.
The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York last week ordered importer Delta Uniforms and its owner, George Iloulian, to pay over $1.3 million for avoiding customs duties on medical uniforms, footwear and other apparel. Judge Paul Gardephe said they violated the False Claims Act and must pay triple the amount of the evaded duties and a $557,880 civil penalty.
Germany-based private airline company Hahn Air Lines and its Minnesota-based subsidiary, Hahn Air USA, will pay $26.8 million to settle allegations the companies violated the False Claims Act by "knowingly failing to remit to the United States certain travel fees" the airline collected from commercial passengers flying to or within the U.S., DOJ announced.
Generic drugmaker KVK Research pleaded guilty last week to charges that it "introduced adulterated drugs into interstate commerce" in violation of the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act, agreeing to pay $1.5 million in fines and forfeiture, DOJ announced.
The U.S. Supreme Court on Feb. 26 said it won't review whether whistleblower Brutus Trading should've been granted a hearing by a lower court in its case accusing U.K.-based Standard Chartered Bank of violating sanctions against Iran.
British financial giant Standard Chartered Bank waived its right to respond to a petition for writ of certiorari at the U.S. Supreme Court in a False Claims Act case brought by whistleblower Brutus Trading. Standard Chartered said it doesn't intend to file a response unless prompted by the court (Brutus Trading v. Standard Chartered, Sup. Ct. # 23-813).
The U.S. District Court for the District of Washington on Jan. 30 granted in part and denied in part importer Yakima Products' bid to seal parts of the complaint in a False Claims Act whistleblower suit against the company's alleged failure to pay import duties and false identification of the country of origin (United States v. Yakima Products Inc., D. Wash. # 21-0524).