Corruption is a Crime

We’ve reported a number of BAE/Al Yamamah stories from the Guardian this week, and the paper presses on hard with its investigation today: “BAE faces criminal inquiry in US over £1bn payments” is the front page headline.

The US department of justice is preparing to open a corruption investigation into the arms company BAE, the Guardian has learned. It would cover the alleged £1bn arms deal payments to Prince Bandar of Saudi Arabia.

Washington sources familiar with the thinking of senior officials at the justice department said yesterday it was “99% certain” that a criminal inquiry would be opened under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA). Such an investigation would have potentially seismic consequences for BAE, which is trying to take over US arms companies and make the Pentagon its biggest customer.

The full story is here. You can find the Guardian’s detailed investigations pulled together in The BAE Files.