* DECEMBER 31, 2009, 3:04 P.M. ET
UTStarcom to Pay Fine for China Bribery
WASHINGTON—UTStarcom Inc., a maker of telecommunications and networking gear, has agreed to pay $3 million in fines to settle civil and criminal charges with federal regulators alleging that it funneled millions of dollars of unlawful payments to foreign government officials in Asia.
Both the Department of Justice and Securities & Exchange Commission charged UTStarcom with violations of anti-bribery provisions under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. Under the settlement, UTStarcom neither admitted nor denied the charges. An attorney for UTStarcom, which is based in Alamdea, Calif., wasn't immediately available for comment.
The U.S. government alleged UTStarcom's China subsidiary paid nearly $7 million between 2002 and 2007 for lavish gifts and hundreds of overseas trips by employees of Chinese government-controlled telecommunications companies that were customers of UTStarcom.
The Justice Department said the trips purportedly were for individuals to participate in training at UTStarcom facilities in Hawaii, Las Vegas and New York City. In fact, UTStarcom didn't have facilities in those locations and didn't conduct any training, according to the complaint.
The company falsely recorded these trips as "training" expenses, while the true purpose for providing these trips was to obtain and retain lucrative telecommunications contracts, Justice said.
The SEC also alleged UTStarcom hired individuals affiliated with foreign government customers to work in the U.S. and provided them with work visas, when in reality the individuals didn't work for UTStarcom. The company also paid salaries and benefits to at least three individuals who didn't actually work for it, according to the complaint.
"Phony annual performance reviews were placed in personnel files for the individuals to document their employment, and UTSI improperly accounted for the payments to the individuals as employee compensation," the SEC complaint said. |
