The Dominican media are following up on a Wall Street Journal story published on 17 March 2016 that reports that sales consultant Elio Moti Sonnenfeld in Brazil has said he paid bribes on behalf of aircraft maker Embraer, the third largest aircraft manufacturer in the world. To push through the US$92 million sale of eight Tucano airplanes during the government of former President Leonel Fernandez, he said that Embraer paid US$3.4 million in commission for a job that was not fulfilled. The money was paid after the sale was cleared. The consultant said that the company’s top manager, including chief executive Frederico Curado was aware of the illicit payments. The aircraft was purchased for the Dominican air force to combat drug trafficking in the Dominican airspace.
Sonnenfeld, who is being investigated along with Embraer senior management, is accused of corruption and money laundering between 2008 and 2010. The Wall Street Journal says that so far the chief executive has not been accused.
As reported, the Dominican military forces created a company to receive the money. Embraer’s internal controls department of observed the irregular payment of US$100,000 in April 2009. To disguise the operation, Sonnenfield was then appointed representative of sales in Jordan to receive the remainder of the funds that he then channeled to an unnamed Dominican officer.
The information was revealed in official summaries reviewed by the Wall Street Journal. The statements were made last year.
Read the Wall Street Journal story by Joe Palazzolo and Rogerio Jelmayer at http://www.wsj.com/articles/embraer-consultant-says-ceo-other-top-managers-knew-of-bribery-1458172694
http://www.diariolibre.com/noticias/politica/vuelve-a-resurgir-caso-de-los-super-tucanos-ED3072688
http://acento.com.do/2014/actualidad/8177073-historia-completa-con-nombres-sobre-caso-de-corrupcion-de-los-aviones-tucano/
