Trenton (New Jersey), Aug 23: Telecommunications gear maker Lucent Technologies is being investigated by two federal agencies for possible violations of US bribery laws in its operations in Saudi Arabia.
In a brief document filed yesterday evening with the Securities and Exchange Commission, the company said it had been informed by the SEC and the Department of Justice that they are investigating whether it violated the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.
Murray Hill-based Lucent has been accused of bribing a Saudi official with cash and gifts worth $15 million in an effort to gain business from the Saudi Telecommunications Co., the country's monopoly wireless provider.
The allegations were made by the National Group for Communications and Computers Ltd., a telecom company that provides internet service in Saudi Arabia, in a lawsuit against Lucent that was filed Aug 08 in federal court in New York.
National Group alleges Lucent and a Swiss company, ACEC, paid more than $15 million in bribes between 1995 in 2001 to Ali al-Johani, a former minister of Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Post Telephone and Telegraph, according to numerous news reports.
Lucent denied the allegations when the lawsuit was filed. In yesterday's SEC filing, it said company officials were cooperating with the Justice Department and the SEC.
Spokesmen for both federal agencies said late yesterday that they could not confirm any investigation or comment on it. Bureau Report