Former Alcatel Executive Pleads Guilty in Participation of Bribes to Senior Costa Rican Officials to Obtain a Mobile Telephone Contract

In June 2007, the DOJ announced that Chrisitan Sapsizian, a French citizen, and former executive of French telecommunications Alcatel CIT (whose shares were traded on the New York Stock Exchange), pleaded guilty to participating in the payment of more than $2.5 million in improper payments to Costa Rican government officials in order to obtain a contract with Costa Rica’s state-owned telecommunications authority. According to the plea, between 2000 – 2004, Sapsizian and others funneled the improper payments through a consulting firm in Costa Rica. Sapsizian faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and approximately $600,000 in fines and penalties.

• View the full summary from the U.S. Department of Justice.