Brazilian Police Make Arrests in 'Operation Resonance' Probe
04 Julio 2018 - 8:39PM
Noticias Dow Jones
By Samantha Pearson
SÃO PAULO -- Brazilian police arrested the head of General
Electric in Latin America on Wednesday as part of an investigation
into a group of companies accused of siphoning off cash from public
health contracts in Rio de Janeiro for the past two decades.
Prosecutors accused Daurio Speranzini Jr. of taking part in the
cartel when he worked for Philips Medical Systems, before joining
General Electric. A Rio de Janeiro court also issued arrest
warrants for another 21 people as part of "Operation Resonance,"
the latest in a series of sprawling corruption probes that have
ensnared the upper echelons of Brazilian business and politics.
Prosecutors said search warrants had been issued for 44
addresses, and assets worth a total of $307 million had been frozen
as part of the investigation into the suspected cartel, which they
believe was in operation between 1996 and 2017.
Prosecutors allege the cartel was set up to fix prices for
medical equipment tenders in the state of Rio and involved at least
33 companies, although some of these were merely front companies,
they said.
Philips said that it was cooperating with the authorities,
adding that members of the company's current executive management
weren't part of the probe.
In a statement Wednesday, General Electric said that the
allegations against its Latin America head related to a period
during which he didn't work for the company, adding that GE was
committed to "integrity, compliance, and the rule of law."
Mr. Speranzini couldn't be reached for comment.
Wednesday's moves come as Brazilian authorities investigate
offshoots of the country's vast "Car Wash" probe that has already
sent scores of top business figures and politicians to prison,
including former President Luis Inácio Lula da Silva.
This week, Eike Batista, once Brazil's wealthiest man, was
sentenced to 30 years in prison after being convicted of bribing
Rio de Janeiro's former state governor. Mr. Batista's lawyer said
he planned to appeal the conviction.
Write to Samantha Pearson at samantha.pearson@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
July 04, 2018 21:24 ET (01:24 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2018 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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