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BAT Faces Full U.K. Probe Into African Tobacco Bribe Report

  • Lucky Strike maker says it’s cooperating with SFO probe
  • BAT also says it’s running internal inquiry into allegations
Several brands of Philip Morris cigarettes are displayed for a photograph in Tiskilwa, Illinois, U.S., on Tuesday, April 17, 2012. Philip Morris International is scheduled to release 2012 first quarter earnings on Thursday, April 19.
Photographer: Daniel Acker/Bloomberg
Gaspard Sebag and Sam Chambers
Updated on

British American Tobacco Plc faces a formal probe by the U.K.’s Serious Fraud Office following reports that the maker of Dunhill cigarettes bribed African government officials to influence tobacco legislation.

BAT said Tuesday it is running its own investigations, via external legal advisers, into allegations of misconduct and is cooperating with the U.K. prosecutor.