Last week, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced that it was fining John Deere $10 million to resolve allegations that it breached the Foreign & Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA). According to a report on a website called whistleblowersblog.org, Wirtgen Thailand, a subsidiary of John Deere, paid bribes to numerous Thai entities, including the Royal Thai Air Force and Department of Highways, to win government contracts. These bribes included but were not limited to cash payments, international travel, and visits to massage parlors. According to the SEC, when John Deere acquired Wirtgen Thailand, they failed to stop the bribery schemes from occurring. John Deere appears to be reaping what they have sown by failing to investigate their new acquisitions’ business practices.
Tag: Thailand
Former Thai Leader Thaksin Released On Parole.
Yesterday, former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra was released on parole due to failing health. According to a report from the BBC, he was released from a police hospital where he had been serving a one-year prison sentence after being found guilty of corruption and abuse of power charges. Last August, he returned to Thailand after being in self-imposed exile for 15 years after a military coup ousted him. According to a report by Aljazeera, many in Thailand are unhappy that Thaksin’s sentence was reduced from eight years to one year and feel that Thaksin and the current Thai government brokered a sweetheart deal to shorten Thaksin’s sentence. No one is sure what will happen next, but knowing Thaksin, despite ill health, he will want to play a role in Thai politics.
Crispin Corruption Report 