US Dental Device Company to Pay $17Mln for Bribing Foreign Officials

Zimmer Biomet Holdings Inc. will have to pay $17.4 million after an investigation alleged Biomet bribed government officials in Argentina, Brazil and China and falsified records to hide the payments.

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — Zimmer Biomet Holdings Inc., a dental and orthopedic implant device manufacturer in the US state of Indiana, will pay $17.4 million to settle charges its subsidiaries bribed Brazilian and Mexican government officials to avoid prosecution, the US Department of Justice said in a press release on Thursday.

An earlier investigation alleged Biomet bribed government officials in Argentina, Brazil and China and falsified records to hide the payments.

In 2012, Biomet and the Justice Department entered into a deferred prosecution agreement (DPA) related to those charges.

"Even after the 2012 DPA between the department and Biomet, the company knowingly and willfully continued to use a third-party distributor in Brazil known to have paid bribes to government officials on Biomet’s behalf," the release stated.

Furthermore, Biomet allowed its Mexican subsidiary, Biomet 3i Mexico, to pay bribes to Mexican officials and customs brokers to import contraband in violation of Mexican law.

Under the agreement, the company agreed to pay $17.4 million in civil penalties and hire an independent corporate compliance monitor for three years.

Additionally, Biomet agreed to pay the US Securities and Exchange Commission $6.5 million in pre-judgment interest and $6.5 million in penalties for a related case.