Prosecutors accused Lafarge of turning a blind eye to the conduct of the militant group, making payments to it in 2013 and 2014 as it occupied a broad swath of Syria and as some of its members were…
NEW YORK — French cement company Lafarge pleaded guilty Tuesday to paying millions of dollars to the Islamic State group in exchange for permission to keep open a plant in Syria, a case the Justice Department described as the first of its kind. The company also agreed to penalties totaling roughly $778 million.
The payments were designed to ensure the continued operations of a roughly $680 million plant that prosecutors say Lafarge had constructed in 2011 at the start of the Syrian civil war. The money was to be used to protect employees and to keep a competitive edge. “There is simply no justification for a multi-national corporation authorizing payments to designated terrorist organizations,” he added.
The allegations involve conduct that was earlier investigated by authorities in France. Lafarge had previously acknowledged funneling money to Syrian armed organizations in 2013 and 2014 to guarantee safe passage for employees and supply its plant.
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