Hong Kong, Feb 03: A former director of BBC Worldwide has been jailed in Hong Kong for 20 months for taking USD 350,000 in bribes, a news report said today. British-based New Zealander Jeffrey Taylor, 43, who was responsible for BBC World's global marketing, took bribes to ensure toys and bags for the BBC were ordered from five suppliers.
Taylor, who received a salary of USD 360,000 a year, pleaded guilty to accepting bribes between July 1999 and October 2001, the South China Morning Post reported.
At a hearing in Hong Kong's High Court Monday, he was jailed for 20 months and ordered to repay the bribes he received to the BBC, the newspaper said.
Two Hong Kong-based toymakers were jointly charged and tried with Taylor and were each also jailed for 20 months over the bribery scam.
The court was told that Taylor took the money to ensure orders were placed through the toymakers' companies. They inflated the invoices to the BBC by five per cent or more.
The surplus money was then siphoned off into bank accounts in Switzerland and New Zealand.
''This is offending that cannot be characterised as a one-off fall from grace,'' Judge John Saunders said at the hearing. ''It is abundantly clear that all three of you knew you were acting corruptly and dishonestly.''
Bureau Report