Kenya and FedEx: Possible breach of FCPA anti-bribery provision
According to Wall Street Journal and Law360 reports, two powerhouses (one country, one company) are involved in a recent self-reported FCPA violation: FedEx Corporation has reported possible infractions of the foreign anti-bribery law in Kenya to the United States Department of Justice.
According to the articles, “FedEx says it told the authorities at the DOJ and the SEC that it had received an email in December outlining allegations of potential bribery in the Republic of Kenya and possible violations of the FCPA. The shipping giant has been investigating the matter since 2013 but has been unable to substantiate the reported claims, the company said.”
“FedEx informed the DOJ and SEC of these allegations shortly after their receipt and have been engaged in a cooperative dialogue with both agencies since that time,” a FedEx spokesperson told Law360 late Tuesday night. “To date, FedEx has not found anything to substantiate the allegations, but the investigation is ongoing.”
The company was allegedly tipped off anonymously late last year, involving claims made in an e-mail (which the sender also threatened to send to the DOJ and Securities and Exchange Commission) that its on-the-ground agent, Pan Africa Express, was implicated in bribing Kenyan government officials in return for favorable conduct, such as “customs officials to clear shipments without inspection, as well as to government vehicle inspectors and others, the person alleged,” according to the WSJ article.
Anti-Fraud & Corruption Law in Africa 