Britain begins criminal proceedings against Unaoil firms

British prosecutors said on Tuesday they had begun criminal proceedings against two Unaoil companies, part of a Monaco-based oil and gas consultancy, in an investigation into alleged bribery, corruption and money laundering.

The Serious Fraud Office (SFO), which has charged six individuals in a two-year investigation, said representatives from Unaoil Monaco SAM and Unaoil Ltd had been asked to attend a London court hearing on July 18 to be formally charged with conspiracy to give corrupt payments to secure contracts in Iraq. read more »

Aruban Telecommunications Purchasing Official Sentenced to Prison in Money Laundering Conspiracy Involving Violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act

Conspirators Paid Over $1.3 Million to Influence the Official and to Secure Business with State-Owned Telecommunications Company

An Aruban official residing in Florida was sentenced to 36 months in prison today for money laundering charges in connection with his role in a scheme to arrange and receive corrupt payments to influence the awarding of contracts with an Aruban state-owned telecommunications corporation.

Acting Assistant Attorney General John P. Cronan of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Benjamin G. Greenberg of the Southern District of Florida and Assistant Special Agent in Charge Paul Keenan of the FBI’s Miami, Florida Field Office made the announcement.

Egbert Yvan Ferdinand Koolman, 49, a Dutch citizen residing in Miami, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Federico A. Moreno of the Southern District of Florida, who also ordered Koolman to serve three years of supervised release following his prison sentence and to pay over $1.3 million in restitution.  Koolman was an official of Servicio di Telecommunicacion di Aruba N.V. (Setar), an instrumentality of the Aruban government.  He pleaded guilty on April 13, before Judge Moreno to one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering.  

According to admissions made as part of his plea agreement, between 2005 and 2016, Koolman operated a money laundering conspiracy from his position as Setar’s product manager.  Koolman admitted that, as part of the scheme, he conspired with Parker and others to transmit funds from Florida and elsewhere in the United States to Aruba and Panama with the intent to promote a wire fraud scheme and a corrupt scheme that violated the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA).  Koolman was promised and received bribes from individuals and companies located in the United States and abroad in exchange for using his position at Setar to award lucrative mobile phone and accessory contracts.  He received the corrupt payments via wire transfer from banks located in the United States, in cash during meetings in Miami and in Aruba, and by withdrawing cash in Aruba using a bank card that drew money from a U.S.-based bank account.  In exchange for the more than $1.3 million in corrupt payments that he received, Koolman also admittedly provided favored vendors with Setar’s confidential information. read more »

'These are human beings': Whistleblower tells Legislature the state fails sick Texans

Lawmakers expressed shock Wednesday at the firsthand account of a former state regulator who testified that hundreds of patients suffered because they didn't get the care Texas paid giant companies to provide.

"These are human beings," said Nancy Toll, a registered nurse and whistleblower whose job was to check on patients who receive government-funded health care in what's called Medicaid managed care.

At a House hearing, Toll described in detail numerous cases she reviewed as leader of a team of nurses who found private companies were collecting billions of dollars to care for disabled adults, foster children and chronically sick children — and then skimping on that care to protect profits. read more »

Zillow cleared in kickback case

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has ended its investigation into whether the Zillow Group violated the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA) and Section 1036 of the Consumer Financial Protection Act with its co-marketing program for agents and lenders, according to a form Zillow filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

The co-marketing program allows Zillow Premier Agents to invite lenders to share advertising costs and appear alongside them as “Premier Lenders.” That arrangement could have exposed agents to legal liability if regulators found that agents were not paying their fair share of the advertising spend. CFPB was considering whether this setup violated the anti-kickback provision of RESPA and the section of the Consumer Financial Protection Act that prohibits anyone from helping financial service providers deceive customers. read more »