THE GUARDIAN: Arms giant given deadline to plead guilty in deal / Company firmly denies all allegations of wrongdoing
The Serious Fraud Office is expected imminently to announce whether it will take the politically momentous decision to seek to prosecute BAE over bribery allegations. The UK arms giant failed tonight to meet a deadline to settle the case or face the courts.
Sources close to the SFO said that the agency would decide what to do tomorrow or Friday. After months of fruitless negotiation, BAE had been given a deadline by the SFO to plead guilty in a negotiated plea deal which would at last draw a line under a six-year investigation into the company's behaviour.
Both sides were refusing to reveal their hand tonight in what appears to be a high-stakes poker game between Britain's biggest arms firm and the agency entrusted with eradicating foreign bribery. >>> David Leigh and Rob Evans | Wednesday, September 30, 2009
TIMES ONLINE: The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) today announced it will seek permission to prosecute BAE, Britain's biggest defence contractor, over bribery charges.
In a brief statement, marking the culmination of an investigation lasting almost six years, the SFO said that it will seek consent from Baroness Scotland, the Attorney General, to prosecute BAE for "offences relating to overseas corruption".
It said that it would prepare its papers to be submitted to the Attorney when the agency “believes it is ready to proceed”.
It gave no further details on the timing of a prosecution, which has to be agreed by the Baroness. >>> Miles Costello | Thursday, October 01, 2009
