SEC Issued Subpoena to Petrobras to Request Documents

By Paul Kiernan 

RIO DE JANEIRO--Brazilian state-controlled energy giant Petrobras said Monday it is under investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission, confirming previous reports that a corruption probe in Brazil has extended to the U.S.

Petrobras said it received a subpoena on Friday in which U.S. regulators requested "documents relating to an investigation of the company by the SEC." The documents are to be sent following an internal investigation by Brazilian law firm Trench, Rossi e Watanabe Advogados and U.S. law firm Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, which Petrobras has hired to help it determine the extent of the allegations.

Authorities in Brazil say Petrobras was at the heart of a vast money-laundering and kickback scheme in which a "cartel" of construction companies overcharged the oil firm for tendered contracts and paid bribes to Petrobras executives and local politicians. The probe has already led to several suspects, including at least one former Petrobras executive, entering plea deals and agreeing to repay tens of millions of dollars they allegedly received in bribes.

Earlier this month, The Wall Street Journal and other newspapers reported that the U.S. Justice Department and SEC had opened their own investigations. Petrobras at the time said it was unaware of them.

The firm has shares and corporate debt traded in New York and owns a refinery in Texas, giving U.S. authorities jurisdiction to prosecute it for possible violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and other laws.

"Petrobras reiterates its commitment to answer the U.S. public authorities with the same endeavor that it is answering the Brazilian public authorities," the firm said in a filing with the local securities regulator on Monday.

Write to Paul Kiernan at [e-mail]

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