Daimler has agreed to pay $185 million to settle bribery charges, the Justice Department said on April 1.
The Justice Department said that Daimler and three of its subsidiaries had resolved charges related to a Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) investigation into the companys worldwide sales practices.
The action came at a hearing before U.S. District Court Judge Richard Leon in the Washington, District of Columbia, federal court.
"Daimler AGs Russian subsidiary DaimlerChrysler Automotive Russia SAO (DCAR), now known as Mercedes-Benz Russia SAO, and its German subsidiary, Export and Trade Finance GmbH (ETF), each pleaded guilty to criminal information charging the companies with one count of conspiracy to violate the anti-bribery provisions of the FCPA and one count of violating those provisions," the department said.
As part of the plea agreements, DCAR and ETF agreed to pay criminal fines of $27.26 million and $29.12 million, respectively.
In a separate, related civil case, Daimler has agreed to pay $91.4 million to settle a case filed by markets regulator the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2010
