The Australian Federal Police have accepted a $9 million settlement from engineering company SMEC, formerly the Snowy Mountains Engineering Corporation, to end a 13-year-long investigation into alleged foreign bribery. The settlement, paid under proceeds of crime legislation, involves no prosecution and no admission of wrongdoing by the company.
The AFP began investigating SMEC's conduct in countries including Sri Lanka and Vietnam in 2013 and twice conducted searches under warrant in subsequent years. Despite the length of the investigation, police did not refer the matter to the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions. The AFP cited factors including the company's cooperation and the time elapsed since the alleged events.
AFP anti-corruption commander Andrea Quinn said the $9 million payment demonstrated that companies could still face significant financial consequences following foreign bribery investigations even without prosecution. "Noting the cooperation of SMEC throughout the investigation, companies identifying potential misconduct and engaging early, transparently and constructively with the AFP place themselves in a materially different position to those who do not," Quinn said. She added that the AFP is committed to detecting, disrupting and deterring foreign bribery.
SMEC cooperated throughout the investigation. A spokeswoman said the company conducted internal investigations, hired external consultants, and self-reported to the AFP in 2016 and 2018. "SMEC cooperated with the AFP throughout the investigation and provided an extensive range of additional material and information as requested over an extended period," she said. "SMEC has zero tolerance for bribery and corruption throughout its global operations and has enhanced its anti-bribery and compliance procedures since the alleged conduct."
As part of the settlement, SMEC also agreed to contribute to the AFP's external legal costs and to donate money to an anti-corruption NGO. The amounts of these payments were not disclosed. The company confirmed that staff alleged to have been involved in the overseas issues are no longer with the company.
SMEC continues to hold major government contracts, including work on the Snowy Hydro 2.0 project.