Griffiths Energy International guilty plea in Canada over Chad (2013)

The Canadian guilty plea

Company statement: Griffiths Energy International Inc. said on 25 January 2013 that it entered a guilty plea to a charge under section 3(1)(b) of the Corruption of Foreign Public Officials Act at the Court of Queen's Bench in Calgary ¹. It said the court accepted the settlement and imposed a total fine of C$10.35 million ¹.

Section 3(1)(b) of the Act makes it an offence to give or offer a benefit to a foreign public official, directly or indirectly, to induce the official to use his or her position to influence acts or decisions of the foreign state ⁴. The current text of section 3(2) sets a maximum of 14 years' imprisonment ⁴.

This page has not located the court's judgment or an agreed statement of facts from an official Canadian source. The plea date and the fine are taken from the company statement and have not been confirmed from a Canadian government or court record.

The company's account

Company statement: Griffiths said prior management and the prior board entered into the contracts between 30 August 2009 and 9 February 2011 ¹. It said the contracts were with two entities owned and controlled by a foreign public official and his spouse, and that improper promises and benefits were indirectly provided to the official ¹. The company said "no influence was actually obtained" ¹.

Company statement: Griffiths said new management and a new board were appointed in July 2011, that it told authorities in November 2011 it had begun an internal investigation, and that the investigation ended in May 2012 with the results shared with authorities ¹. It said the court treated its self-reporting as a significant factor, and that it "received no tangible concessions from the authorities when it self-reported" ¹.

US forfeiture actions over the Chad payments

On 7 November 2014 DOJ said it filed a civil forfeiture complaint seeking US$106,488.31 held in South African accounts of Mahamoud Adam Bechir ². DOJ alleged that Bechir and his wife, Nouracham Niam, entered into agreements with Griffiths that provided for a US$2 million "consulting fee" if the company secured oil rights in Chad ². It said that after the rights were secured in February 2011 the company allegedly transferred US$2 million to a Washington, D.C. account held by a shell company Niam created ².

On 30 June 2015 DOJ said it filed a complaint seeking civil forfeiture of about US$34 million, the cash value of shares in Griffiths Energy ³. DOJ said Bechir served as Chad's ambassador to the United States and Canada from 2004 to 2012, and named Youssouf Hamid Takane, deputy chief of mission from about 2007 to 2015 ³. DOJ said that in or about October 2009 the company issued four million shares to the wives of the two officials and another associate ³.

The DOJ releases describe these facts "as alleged in the complaint" or as things done "allegedly" ^2,3. They are allegations in civil complaints, not findings. This page has not confirmed the outcome of either forfeiture case.