LONDON: Britain’s Serious Fraud Office (SFO) said on Thursday it was investigating suspected bribery and corruption at Thales, Europe’s largest defence technology company.
Investigators from the SFO and France’s Parquet National Financier (PNF) have informed Paris-headquartered Thales of the probe, the SFO added in a statement.
A Thales spokesperson confirmed that the company was cooperating with the two authorities in an investigation related to four of its entities in France and Britain.
“The group complies with all national and international regulations. As the investigation is on-going, Thales will not comment further,“ the spokesperson said.
A French judicial source told Reuters that the investigation related to an arms contract in Asia.
The probe centres on possible charges of bribery of a foreign public official, influence trafficking, the handling of stolen goods and money laundering, the French source added.
Thales employs more than 7,000 staff in Britain across 16 sites. Its military and civil products range from sub-hunting sonars to biometric identity systems for banks, and from satellites to seat-back entertainment systems for airlines.
“Working collaboratively with our international partners is a crucial factor in the fight against international corruption and with this case I hope to reinforce the SFO and PNF’s long-standing relationship,“ said SFO Director Nick Ephgrave.
“We will together rigorously pursue every avenue in our investigation into these serious allegations,“ he added.
In June, police in France, Spain and the Netherlands had searched the offices of Thales as part of a corruption probe.
