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Chile: SQM to pay $30 million fine for political meddling

By  |  January 17, 2017

Chilean mining giant SQM announced this Friday they have reached an agreement with the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC), allowing the company to pay a $30 million dollar fine in order to avoid in-depth legal probes into alleged links between the company and politically significant people between 2008 and 2015.

As part of the deal, SQM has plead guilty to charges including violations to requirements for internal control and accountability systems. The payment of these dual $15 million dollar fines will allow the company to avoid uncomfortable investigations for at least three more years.

Several businesses and individuals related to Chile’s political figures have recently come forward with unsubstantiated bills and invoices for services never carried out by SQM. This case is still being investigated by Chile’s authorities.

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