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Malaysian opens investigations into Airbus bribery scandal

Source The Ghana Report/ Seth J. Bokpe

Two days after aeroplane manufacturer, Airbus reached an agreement with governments of the United State, UK and France to pay 3 billion euros in fines over its corrupt deals that allowed it to bribe government officials and fixers to sell its aircraft, Malaysia has opened investigations into the scandal.

The Asian tiger and Ghana are among countries named in investigative documents where government officials, airlines executives and lobbyists are alleged to have collected bribes to open doors for Europe’s largest aerospace company to sell its wares.

Explosive document: Airbus confesses sharing bribes in Ghana as £3bn corruption fine bites

Two unnamed Airasia executive have been implicated in the scandal in which UK authorities have deferred prosecutions—a plea bargain that protects Airbus from prosecution, which would have barred the company from bidding for contracts in the European Union and the United States.

The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission says it is “in touch with the UK authorities and is already investigating the matter.”

“Under the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission Act, we are empowered and have jurisdiction to investigate any corruption committed by any Malaysian citizen or permanent resident in any place outside Malaysia,” a statement signed and issued by its Chief Commissioner, Latheefa Koya said on Saturday.

The allegations surfaced on Friday when Airbus agreed a record $3-billion settlement with France, Britain and the United States. Prosecutors said it had bribed public officials and hidden payments as part of a pattern of worldwide corruption.

UK’s Serious Fraud Office (SFO) said on Friday that between October 2013 and January 2015, Airbus’s then-parent EADS paid $50 million to sponsor a sports team that was jointly owned by two people described as AirAsia Executive 1 and Executive 2.

The  SFO said the executives were rewarded for an aircraft order from Airbus, an allegation AirAsia denied late on Saturday.

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