The U.S. filed new charges under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act against Javier Aguilar, a former oil and commodities trader at Vitol, accusing the Mexico and Houston resident of conspiracy to violate the FCPA's anti-bribery provisions for schemes in Ecuador and Mexico. The case against Aguilar was originally brought to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York in 2020 solely for the Ecuadorian bribery scheme (see 2009230016). The new indictment now lays out five counts against Aguilar, four for FCPA violations and one for money laundering (U.S. v. Javier Aguilar, E.D.N.Y. #20-00390).
The U.S. is likely to see several more resolutions under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act in the coming months, Acting Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole Argentieri said at an annual FCPA conference this week. Argentieri made the remark after highlighting FCPA enforcement action taken in 2022. These moves included three corporate FCPA resolutions, involving Stericycle, Glencore and GOL Linhas Airlines, and one declination under the Corporate Enforcement Policy with disgorgement, involving Jardine Lloyd Thompson Group Holdings (JLT).
A World Trade Organization dispute panel found that Indonesia's ban on the export of nickel ore violates global trade rules, circulating its decision on Nov. 30. Indonesia's president said the country will appeal the ruling, reported JakartaGlobe, an Indonesian news outlet.
Laboratory equipment distributor Intertech Trading Corp. was sentenced on Oct. 17 to pay a total fine of $140,000 for failing to file export information on shipments to Russia and Ukraine, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of New Hampshire announced. Intertech was ordered to pay the maximum fine of $10,000 per count for 14 counts of failure to file the export information required.
India told the World Trade Organization Oct. 11 that it initiated a safeguard investigation on poly vinyl chloride suspension resin with residual vinyl chloride monomer above two parts per million, the WTO announced. India started the investigation Sept. 16 and said all interested parties can make their views on the matter known within 30 days from Sept. 16 to the Directorate General of Foreign Trade.
Colombia and the EU initiated an arbitration proceeding at the World Trade Organization to look over a dispute panel's findings in a proceeding on Colombia's antidumping duties on frozen fries from Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands, the WTO said. Colombia circulated the notice of appeal Oct. 10 and started the arbitration proceeding under Article 25 of the Dispute Settlement Understanding.
The World Trade Organization's Dispute Settlement Body granted South Korea and the U.S. more time to find a possible settlement in the dispute over the U.S.'s safeguard measures on large residential washers, the WTO said Oct. 5. The U.S. and South Korea asked the DSB to adopt the dispute settlement panel's findings no later than Dec. 20, unless the DSB decides not to do so or either party tells the DSB of its decision to appeal the ruling. The DSB agreed to the terms.
The EU officially imposed its eighth sanctions package on Russia since the invasion of Ukraine, the European Council said Oct. 6. The restrictions, which include a price cap related to the maritime transport of Russian oil to third-party countries, were imposed after Russia's illegal annexation of the Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions of Ukraine. The European Commission welcomed official adoption of the restrictions proposed last week (see 2209290025).
Richard Lant, a Nevada resident, pleaded guilty on Oct. 3 to conspiracy to illegally export tank helmets to Iran, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of California announced. From May to October 2015, Lant and other co-conspirators, including Dariush Niknia, who pleaded guilty in September, worked to illegally sell 500 of the Russian-made tank helmets to Niknia's Iranian customer. The helmets were made for Russian-made T-72S battle tanks and have a "five-pin plug" feature needed for compatibility with a tank communication device, the U.S. Attorney's Office said.
The U.S. Supreme Court in an Oct. 3 order denied Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska's petition for certiorari over his sanctions designation. The move comes shortly after he, along with his associates, were charged with conspiring to violate his sanctions listing. The court rejected the cert motion without issuing any further explanation.