BAT to Pay $635 Million to US Over North Korea Sanctions
- Cigarette maker disguised sales in North Korea, US says
- Company entered deferred-prosecution agreement with US
Photographer: Robert Gilhooly/Bloomberg
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Cigarette maker British American Tobacco plc agreed to pay $635.2 million to US authorities to resolve investigations into sanctions violations for selling products in North Korea and misleading banks about the source of those sales.
Lawyers for the UK company appeared Tuesday in Washington federal court, where the US Department of Justice agreed to defer prosecution of BAT in exchange for promised reforms. A Singapore subsidiary of BAT also pleaded guilty to charges of conspiracy to commit bank fraud and conspiracy to violate sanctions.