Thursday, May 26, 2022

Governor Hochul Updates New Yorkers on State's Progress Combating COVID-19 - MAY 25, 2022

 Clinical specimen testing for Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) at Wadsworth Laboratory

Statewide 7-Day Average Case Rate Lowest Since May 5 -- Eight Days of Consecutive Decline

Cases Down Across All Regions Compared to Previous Week

Governor Encourages New Yorkers to Keep Using the Tools to Protect Against and Treat COVID-19: Vaccines, Boosters, Testing, and Treatment

18 Statewide Deaths Reported Yesterday


 Governor Kathy Hochul today updated New Yorkers on the state's progress combating COVID-19.

"As we continue to monitor the numbers closely, I encourage New Yorkers to continue using the tools to protect against and treat COVID-19," Governor Hochul said. "The best way to avoid serious illness from COVID-19 is by keeping up to date with your vaccination and booster doses. Be sure to get tested to ensure you're not spreading the virus to your loved ones. If you test positive, talk to your doctor about treatment. Let's not let our guard down as we work to move forward safely through this pandemic."

Today's data is summarized briefly below:   

  • Cases Per 100k - 45.34
  • 7-Day Average Cases Per 100k - 44.29
  • Test Results Reported - 104,776
  • Total Positive - 8,861
  • Percent Positive - 8.23%**
  • 7-Day Average Percent Positive - 8.03%**
  • Patient Hospitalization - 2,653 (-71)
  • Patients Newly Admitted - 437
  • Patients in ICU - 234 (-3)
  • Patients in ICU with Intubation - 92 (-4)
  • Total Discharges - 305,323 (+486)
  • New deaths reported by healthcare facilities through HERDS - 18
  • Total deaths reported by healthcare facilities through HERDS - 55,988

** Due to the test reporting policy change by the federal Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and several other factors, the most reliable metric to measure virus impact on a community is the case per 100,000 data -- not percent positivity.  

The Health Electronic Response Data System is a NYS DOH data source that collects confirmed daily death data as reported by hospitals, nursing homes and adult care facilities only.    

Important Note: Effective Monday, April 4, the federal Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is no longer requiring testing facilities that use COVID-19 rapid antigen tests to report negative results. As a result, New York State's percent positive metric will be computed using only lab-reported PCR results. Positive antigen tests will still be reported to New York State and reporting of new daily cases and cases per 100k will continue to include both PCR and antigen tests. Due to this change and other factors, including changes in testing practices, the most reliable metric to measure virus impact on a community is the case per 100,000 data -- not percent positivity.  

  • Total deaths reported to and compiled by the CDC - 71,468  

This daily COVID-19 provisional death certificate data reported by NYS DOH and NYC to the CDC includes those who died in any location, including hospitals, nursing homes, adult care facilities, at home, in hospice and other settings.      

  • Total vaccine doses administered - 38,817,809
  • Total vaccine doses administered over past 24 hours - 17,963
  • Total vaccine doses administered over past 7 days - 106,393
  • Percent of New Yorkers ages 18 and older with at least one vaccine dose - 92.5%
  • Percent of New Yorkers ages 18 and older with completed vaccine series - 84.0%
  • Percent of New Yorkers ages 18 and older with at least one vaccine dose (CDC) - 95.0%
  • Percent of New Yorkers ages 18 and older with completed vaccine series (CDC) - 87.3%
  • Percent of New Yorkers ages 12-17 with at least one vaccine dose (CDC) - 83.5%
  • Percent of New Yorkers ages 12-17 with completed vaccine series (CDC) - 73.4%
  • Percent of all New Yorkers with at least one vaccine dose - 82.1%
  • Percent of all New Yorkers with completed vaccine series - 74.4%
  • Percent of all New Yorkers with at least one vaccine dose (CDC) - 90.5%
  • Percent of all New Yorkers with completed vaccine series (CDC) - 77.3%  
Each New York City borough's 7-day average percentage of positive test results reported over the last three days is as follows **:   

Borough  

Sunday, May 22, 2022 

Monday, May 23, 2022 

Tuesday, May 24, 2022 

Bronx 

4.29% 

4.50% 

4.55% 

Kings 

6.48% 

6.49% 

6.46% 

New York 

6.97% 

6.80% 

6.79% 

Queens 

6.52% 

6.54% 

6.70% 

Richmond 

7.74% 

7.59% 

7.63% 

Wednesday, May 25, 2022

Husband And Wife Charged In Interstate Gun Trafficking Scheme

 

 Damian Williams, United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, John DeVito, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, New York Field Division (ATF), and Keechant L. Sewell, Police Commissioner for the City of New York (NYPD), announced today that RONALD ROGERS and ANAUNCIA ROGERS were charged with conspiracy to commit gun trafficking and gun trafficking, in connection with their involvement in a scheme to illegally obtain and transport firearms from Georgia for resale to residents of New York.  RONALD ROGERS was arrested yesterday traveling from Georgia to New York and was presented today before Magistrate Judge Robert W. Lehrburger in the Southern District of New York.  ANAUNCIA ROGERS was also arrested yesterday in Georgia and was presented today in the Northern District of Georgia.

U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said:  “As alleged, Anauncia and Ronald Rogers were in the business of illegally purchasing firearms in Georgia and transporting them to New York.  The two are alleged to have purchased 68 guns in their interstate weapons-buying scheme.  The importation of firearms into the tri-state exposes millions of New Yorkers to potentially lethal harm, and I commend the career prosecutors of this Office for partnering with the ATF and NYPD in the ongoing effort to rid our streets of illegal guns.”

ATF Special Agent-in-Charge John  DeVito said:  “One of ATF’s top priorities is to decrease the ever-growing threat to public safety caused by illegally trafficked firearms.  The men and women of the Joint Firearms Task Force worked diligently to identify, investigate and to apprehend Ronald and Anauncia Rogers in this case.  This investigation is yet another example of the collaborative work of the NYC Crime Gun Intelligence Center and all our investigative partners to reduce firearms trafficking and violent crime across our City and Nation.”

NYPD Commissioner Keechant L. Sewell said:  “The NYPD and our law enforcement partners at the ATF and the Office of the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District remain precisely focused on building strong cases against anyone who peddles illegal guns on the streets of New York.  Bringing these gun traffickers to justice is dangerous work, and I commend our dedicated investigators for identifying and taking into custody this husband-and-wife team, who will now face the full consequences of their alleged actions.”

According to the allegations contained in the Complaint[1]:

From at least in or around September 2018 up to and including March 2022, RONALD ROGERS and ANAUNCIA ROGERS, both residents of the state of Georgia, engaged in a scheme to buy at least 68 firearms from at least seven federal firearms licensees (“FFLs”) in Georgia.  Over the course of the scheme, ANAUNCIA ROGERS personally purchased at least 47 firearms. In connection with each purchase, ANAUNCIA ROGERS attested that she was the true purchaser of the firearms, when in fact she was buying guns on behalf of her husband and co-defendant, RONALD ROGERS.  After ANAUNCIA ROGERS purchased the guns, RONALD ROGERS transported the firearms to New York City, usually by car, and illegally resold many of the guns to others.

To date, the NYPD has seized six firearms purchased in Georgia by ANAUNCIA ROGERS during arrests in New York City. 

RONALD ROGERS, 26, and ANAUNCIA ROGERS, 26, both of Riverdale, Georgia, are charged with one count of conspiracy to commit gun trafficking, which carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison, and one count of gun trafficking, which also carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison.

The maximum potential sentences in this case are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the judge.

Mr. Williams praised the outstanding work of the ATF and the NYPD for their assistance in this investigation.

The charges contained in the Complaint are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

[1] As the introductory phrase signifies, the entirety of the text of the Complaint and the description of the Complaint set forth in this release constitute only allegations, and every fact described should be treated as an allegation.

BRONX MAN INDICTED ON ATTEMPTED MURDER AND ATTEMPTED RAPE CHARGES FOR ATTACKING WOMAN IN BUILDING HALLWAY

 

Victim Was Strangled, Suffered Skull Fracture and Blood Loss

 Bronx District Attorney Darcel D. Clark today announced a Bronx man has been indicted on Attempted Murder, Attempted Rape, and additional charges for sexually assaulting, strangling, and beating a woman inside a University Heights building.

 District Attorney Clark said, “The defendant allegedly attacked the victim in a hallway of her building. The brutality left the victim with fractured bones and blood loss. We will pursue justice for her.”

 District Attorney Clark said the defendant, Jason Dickerson, 34, of 2860 Bailey Avenue, was arraigned today on Attempted Murder in the first degree, Attempted Murder in the second degree, two counts of Attempted Rape in the first degree, two counts of first-degree Sexual Abuse, second-degree Sexual Abuse, first and second-degree Strangulation, Criminal Obstruction of Breathing or Blood Circulation, and second-degree Assault before Bronx Supreme Court Justice Raymond Bruce. The defendant was remanded and is due back in court on August 9, 2022.

 According to the investigation, inside a hallway in a building on Davidson Avenue on March 11, 2022 at approximately 3:30 p.m., the defendant allegedly offered the victim, a 27-yearold woman, money for sex. The victim complied and after engaging in sexual acts Dickerson demanded his money back. When the victim refused to give him the money, he allegedly put his arm around her neck and strangled her repeatedly until she lost consciousness. Dickerson allegedly sexually abused the victim and attempted to rape her while she was unconscious. When the victim regained consciousness, she screamed loudly, and the defendant ran off. The incident was captured on surveillance video.

 During the struggle, the defendant struck the victim causing a laceration to her face, as

 District Attorney Clark thanked Detective Ernesto Castillo of the NYPD Bronx Special Victims Squad, Neighborhood Coordination Officer Gregory Scott of the 52nd Precinct, Detective Jaysen Basnight of the NYPD Crime Scene Unit, and Detective Ronald Hobson of the NYPD Bronx Warrant Squad for their assistance in the investigation. 

 An indictment is an accusatory instrument and not proof of a defendant’s guilt

MAYOR ADAMS ANNOUNCES MORE THAN 1,300 NEW YORKERS HAVE ACCEPTED SHELTER SINCE LAUNCH OF SUBWAY SAFETY PLAN


Unprecedented $171 Million Investment in Low-Barrier Safe Haven and Stabilization Beds Ensures Unhoused New Yorkers Have Short- and Longer-Term Destinations of Care, Support, and Housing


 New York City Mayor Eric Adams today announced that three months into the Subway Safety Plan, 1,379 people experiencing homelessness have accepted placement in safe haven, stabilization, and shelter beds. This is a five-fold increase in people accepting services compared with the first week of the plan, when only 22 people accepted shelter. Additionally, the city’s outreach teams are making on average 744 engagements with people in need each day in both the mayor’s Subway Safety Plan and end-of-line (EOL) outreach efforts, building trust to connect more New Yorkers to long-term permanent housing, mental health care, and community-based services.

 

“Three months into our work making subways safer and connecting New Yorkers in need with services, and it is evident that our efforts are working,” said Mayor Adams. “We have connected more than 1,300 New Yorkers with shelter and other vital services and our teams are making hundreds of engagements every day on the subways, a monumental milestone. It’s a new day in New York, and this announcement shows what is possible when we can break down silos between agencies and work in partnership with the state and the MTA toward a collective goal. There is no one-size-fits-all approach, so we will continue to evaluate what works best, while never wavering from our commitment to help put New Yorkers experiencing homelessness on a path towards permanent housing and stability and building a safer subway system for all.” 

 

“Every New Yorker deserves a permanent home and today’s milestone is a first step toward that goal,” said Deputy Mayor for Health and Human Services Anne Williams-Isom. “Today’s announcement is a product of multiagency coordination underway including robust city-state partnerships working together to execute the Subway Safety Plan and homeless outreach work. Thank you to all the community-based organizations doing outreach work every day.”

 

“This administration is already delivering on its promise to make a real difference in the lives of our most vulnerable New Yorkers, and we’re proud of the significant progress we’ve made over such a short period of time,” said New York City Department of Social Services (DSS) Commissioner Gary P. Jenkins. “The unprecedented investments in dedicated resources coupled with an all-hands-on-deck approach to addressing unsheltered homelessness has helped over 1,300 New Yorkers take the first step toward stabilizing their lives. The support of our agency and state partners has been key to the effective implementation of our strategic efforts to address a long, intractable crisis and achieving these results. Most importantly, we are grateful for our compassionate outreach teams that work around the clock to engage and build trust with our fellow New Yorkers in need, encouraging them to come inside and receive the high-quality services they deserve.”

 

“The NYPD is proud to be a part of this innovative, multiagency effort to ensure that no New Yorker is left behind,” said New York City Police Department (NYPD) Commissioner Keechant L. Sewell. “Our collective response to homelessness, and its fundamental causes, is rooted in both compassion and a can-do spirit to makes things better, to help connect our city’s most vulnerable populations with the services they deserve, and to improve life for all New Yorkers. This is our solemn pledge as our NYPD officers continue working day and night to prevent and combat crime and maintain public safety in our great city.”

 

“Meeting the needs of unhoused people on our subways and streets, who often face complex health, mental health, and social needs, is some of the most challenging work we do as city. Getting these fellow New Yorkers connected with services and shelter should be easier,” said New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) Commissioner Dr. Ashwin Vasan. “This pioneering approach is finally making inroads at getting our neighbors linked to the supports that will help them recover and thrive. We are proud to be part of this effort with our partner agencies.”

 

“Vulnerable New Yorkers deserve to live with dignity, access to health care, and housing that includes basic facilities. The subway isn’t a home that lives up to that standard,” said Janno Lieber, chair and CEO, Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA). “We welcome Mayor Adams’ commitment to engage compassionately with those who would otherwise be forced to use the transit system as a shelter of last resort.”

 

As part of the Subway Safety Plan, the city is providing outreach services at all 24 end-of-line stations every night and throughout the subway system every day. At some EOL stations, enhanced outreach is provided overnight through joint response efforts that include DSS, DOHMH, NYPD, MTA, and community-based providers in high-need locations across the city. The city also partners with the state’s Safe Options Support Outreach Teams, which consist of outreach workers and clinicians to connect people to ongoing Critical Time Intervention services. 

 

Last month, Mayor Adams announced unprecedented investments in high-quality services and resources dedicated to helping unsheltered New Yorkers transition off the streets, and out of the subway system, and move into more stable housing. As part of his focus to help those experiencing homelessness, the mayor allocated an additional $171 million a year, beginning in Fiscal Year 2023, to aggressively expand and enhance outreach efforts and specialized resources, including safe havens, stabilization beds, and Drop-in Centers — the largest investment made by any city administration in street outreach and targeted low-barrier programs.

 

Governor Hochul Proposes Additional Action on State Gun Laws in Wake of Deadly Mass Shooting at Texas Elementary School

Governor Hochul delivers remarks at Interstate Task Force on Illegal Guns meeting

 Governor Hochul: "How does an 18-year-old purchase an AR-15 in the State of New York, State of Texas? That person's not old enough to buy a legal drink. I want to work with the legislature to change that. I want it to be 21. I think that's just common sense."

Directs State Police to Increase Visibility at Schools Out of an Abundance of Caution, Convenes Emergency Meeting of School Safety Improvement Team 

Provides Update on Gun Seizures Following Formation of Interstate Task Force on Illegal Guns in January 

State Police Illegal Gun Seizures Up 60 Percent Per Month, Have Conducted 299 Gun Tracing Investigations Resulting in Leads in 22 States 

Nearly 4,000 Guns Seized by All New York Law Enforcement Agencies in 2022


 Governor Kathy Hochul today proposed additional action to strengthen and close loopholes in state gun laws in the wake of a horrific mass shooting in Texas that claimed the lives of at least 21 people - including 19 elementary school children. Out of an abundance of caution, Governor Hochul is directing State Police to increase visibility at schools in their patrol areas statewide. This increased presence includes check-ins at schools to be conducted by both uniform and plainclothes members. This effort will continue through the end of the school year.

Earlier this morning, Governor Hochul convened an emergency meeting of the state's School Safety Improvement Team (SSIT), which includes the State Police, State Education Department, Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services and the Division of Criminal Justice Services. The meeting was held to ensure that everything possible is being done to support school safety across the state. The SSIT was created in 2013 following the tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary School. The team works to support the safety of schools and ensure that each has the proper security protocols and procedures in place.

Governor Hochul also directed flags to remain at half-staff to honor the victims of the Texas shooting. Flags will remain at half-staff until 12 PM on Monday, May 30.

"The horrific shooting of 19 children and two teachers in Texas, not even two weeks after the mass murder of ten New Yorkers in Buffalo, is yet another infuriating reminder of the plague of gun violence facing our nation," Governor Hochul said. "These are steps we shouldn't have to take, but I am convening an emergency meeting of the state's School Safety Improvement Team and directing State Police to increase visibility at schools to make sure we are doing everything in our power to prevent the next tragedy. My administration will continue working to strengthen the gun laws in our state and put an end to these horrific acts, so that everyone—from schoolchildren to those shopping for groceries to those visiting houses of worship—can live without fear that their lives will be cut short by a weapon of war."

Last week, in direct response to the white supremacist act of terror that claimed 10 lives at a supermarket in Buffalo, Governor Hochul unveiled a comprehensive plan to combat the steady rise in domestic terrorism and violent extremism, strengthen state gun laws and crack down on social media platforms that host and amplify content that promotes and broadcasts violent acts.

The package included the issuing to two key Executive Orders. The first Executive Order will establish a new unit within the Office of Counterterrorism dedicated solely to the prevention of domestic terrorism, while also establishing a dedicated State Police unit to track domestic violent extremism through social media. The second Executive Order will require State Police to file for an Extreme Risk Protection Order (ERPO) under New York State's Red Flag Law whenever they have probable cause to believe that an individual is a threat to themselves or others.

As part of the package, Governor Hochul is also pushing a series of legislative measures designed to help law enforcement investigate and prevent gun-related crimes. The Governor is proposing new legislation to close the "other gun" loophole by revising and widening the definition of a firearm, making more guns subject to various preexisting firearm laws. Governor Hochul is working with the Legislature to pass two bills to address and streamline the investigation of gun-related crimes. The first would set forth a process to require semiautomatic pistols manufactured or delivered to licensed dealers in New York to be microstamping-enabled. The second piece of legislation would strengthen gun reporting protocols by requiring all law enforcement agencies to report the recovery of any crime gun within 24 hours of their discovery.

Governor Hochul has prioritized strengthening coordination between law enforcement agencies at all levels and across various states, convening the Interstate Task Force on Illegal Guns in January to share intelligence, tools, tactics and strategies for combating gun violence, especially as it relates to trafficking firearms between different states. The Task Force is comprised of more than 50 law enforcement representatives from nine northeastern states.

Glencore Entered Guilty Pleas To Foreign Bribery And Market Manipulation Conspiracies

 

Swiss-Based Firm Agrees to Pay Over $1.1 Billion

 Merrick B. Garland, the United States Attorney General, Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Kenneth A. Polite, Jr., Assistant Attorney General of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Vanessa Roberts Avery, U.S. Attorney of the District of Connecticut, Luis Quesada, Assistant Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Criminal Investigative Division, and Gary Barksdale, Chief Postal Inspector of the United States Postal Inspection Service, announced that Glencore International A.G. (Glencore) pled guilty in the Southern District of New York to violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA).  In addition, as part of a separate resolution, Glencore Ltd., pled guilty in the District of Connecticut to a commodity price manipulation conspiracy.  Together, Glencore and Glencore Ltd., both part of a multi-national commodity trading and mining firm headquartered in Switzerland, agreed to pay over $1.1 billion to resolve the government’s investigations into bribery and commodity and price manipulation.   These guilty pleas are part of coordinated resolutions with criminal and civil authorities in the U.S., U.K., and Brazil.

Attorney General Merrick B. Garland said:  “The rule of law requires that there not be one rule for the powerful and another for the powerless; one rule for the rich and another for the poor.  The Justice Department will continue to bring to bear its resources on these types of cases, no matter the company and no matter the individual.”

U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said:  “The scope of this criminal bribery scheme is staggering.  Glencore paid bribes to secure oil contracts.  Glencore paid bribes to avoid government audits.  Glencore bribed judges to make lawsuits disappear.  At bottom, Glencore paid bribes to make money—hundreds of millions of dollars.  And it did so with the approval, and even encouragement, of its top executives.  The criminal charges filed against Glencore in the Southern District of New York are another step in making clear that no one – not even multinational corporations—is above the law.”

Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite, Jr. said: “Glencore’s guilty pleas demonstrate the Department’s commitment to holding accountable those who profit by manipulating our financial markets and engaging in corrupt schemes around the world.  In the foreign bribery case, Glencore International A.G. and its subsidiaries bribed corrupt intermediaries and foreign officials in seven countries for over a decade. In the commodity price manipulation scheme, Glencore Ltd. undermined public confidence by creating the false appearance of supply and demand to manipulate oil prices.”

U.S. Attorney Vanessa Roberts Avery said: “Glencore’s market price manipulation threatened not just financial harm, but undermined participants’ faith in the commodities markets’ fair and efficient function that we all rely on.  This guilty plea, and the substantial financial penalty incurred, is an appropriate consequence for Glencore’s criminal conduct, and we are pleased that Glencore has agreed to cooperate in any ongoing investigations and prosecutions relating to their misconduct, and to strengthen its compliance program company-wide.  I thank both our partners at the U.S. Postal Inspection Service for their hard work and dedication in investigating this sophisticated set of facts and unraveling this scheme, and the Fraud Section, with whom we look forward to continuing our fruitful partnership of prosecuting complex financial and corporate criminal cases.

FBI Assistant Director Luis Quesada said:  “Today’s guilty pleas by Glencore entities show that there is no place for corruption and fraud in international markets.  Glencore engaged in long-running bribery and price manipulation conspiracies, ultimately costing the company over a billion dollars in fines. The FBI and our law enforcement partners will continue to investigate criminal financial activities and work to restore the public’s trust in the marketplace.”

USPIS Chief Postal Inspector Gary Barksdale said:  “The idea of fair and honest trade is at the bedrock of American commerce. It is insult to our shared traditions and values when individuals and corporations use their power, wealth, and influence to stack the deck unfairly in their own favor.  The resulting guilty plea by Glencore Limited demonstrates the tenacity of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and its law enforcement partners in holding criminals accountable who try to enrich themselves by undermining the forces of supply and demand.”

The FCPA Case

According to the Information filed in the Southern District of New York, statements made in court, as well as other publicly-filed documents in this case:

Glencore, acting through its employees and agents, engaged in a conspiracy for over a decade to pay more than $100 million to third-party intermediaries, while intending that a significant portion of these payments would be used to pay bribes to officials in several countries, including Nigeria, Cameroon, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Brazil, Venezuela, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

Between approximately 2007 and 2018, Glencore and its subsidiaries caused approximately $79.6 million in payments to be made to intermediary companies in order to secure improper advantages to obtain and retain business with state-owned and state-controlled entities in West Africa, including Nigeria, Cameroon, Ivory Coast, and Equatorial Guinea. Glencore concealed the bribe payments by entering into sham consulting agreements, paying inflated invoices, and using intermediary companies to make corrupt payments to foreign officials. For example, in Nigeria, Glencore and Glencore’s U.K. subsidiaries entered into multiple agreements to purchase crude oil and refined petroleum products from Nigeria’s state-owned and state-controlled oil company. Glencore and its subsidiaries engaged two intermediaries to pursue business opportunities and other improper business advantages, including the award of crude oil contracts, while knowing that the intermediaries would make bribe payments to Nigerian government officials to obtain such business. In Nigeria alone, Glencore and its subsidiaries paid more than $52 million to the intermediaries, intending that those funds be used, at least in part, to pay bribes to Nigerian officials.

In the DRC, Glencore admitted that it conspired to corruptly offer and pay approximately $27.5 million to third parties, while intending for a portion of the payments to be used as bribes to DRC officials, in order to secure improper business advantages. Glencore also admitted to bribery of officials in Brazil and Venezuela. In Brazil, the company caused approximately $147,202 to be used, at least in part, as corrupt payments for Brazilian officials. In Venezuela, Glencore admitted to conspiring to secure improper business advantages by paying over $1.2 million to an intermediary company that made corrupt payments for the benefit of a Venezuelan official.

In July 2021, a former senior trader in charge of Glencore’s West Africa desk for the crude oil business pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to violate the FCPA and one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering.

Under the terms of the plea agreement, which remains subject to Court approval, Glencore pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to violate the FCPA, agreed to a criminal fine of $428,521,173, and acknowledged criminal forfeiture liability in the amount of $272,185,792. Glencore also had charges brought against it by the U.K.’s Serious Fraud Office (SFO) and reached separate parallel resolutions with the Brazilian Ministério Público Federal (MPF) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). Under the terms of the plea agreement, the department has agreed to credit the company over $256 million in payments that it makes to the CFTC, to the Court in the U.K. as well as to authorities in Switzerland, in the event that the company reaches a resolution with Swiss authorities within one year.

The department reached its agreement with Glencore based on a number of factors, including the nature, seriousness, and pervasiveness of the offense conduct, which spanned over a 10-year period, in numerous countries, and involved high-level employees and agents of the company; the company’s failure to voluntarily and timely disclose the conduct to the department; the state of Glencore’s compliance program and the progress of its remediation; the company’s resolutions with other domestic and foreign authorities; and the company’s continued cooperation with the department’s ongoing investigation. Glencore did not receive full credit for cooperation and remediation, because it did not at all times demonstrate a commitment to full cooperation, it was delayed in producing relevant evidence, and it did not timely and appropriately remediate with respect to disciplining certain employees involved in the misconduct. Although Glencore has taken remedial measures, certain of the compliance enhancements are new and have not been fully implemented or tested to demonstrate that they would prevent and detect similar misconduct in the future, necessitating the imposition of an independent compliance monitor for a term of three years.

The Commodity Price Manipulation Case

According to court documents filed in the District of Connecticut, Glencore Ltd. operated a global commodity trading business, which included trading in fuel oil. Between approximately January 2011 and August 2019, Glencore Ltd. employees (including those who worked at Chemoil Corporation, which was majority-owned by Glencore Ltd.’s parent company and then fully-acquired in 2014) conspired to manipulate two benchmark price assessments published by S&P Global Platts (Platts) for fuel oil products, specifically, intermediate fuel oil 380 CST at the Port of Los Angeles (Los Angeles 380 CST Bunker Fuel) and RMG 380 fuel oil at the Port of Houston (U.S. Gulf Coast High-Sulfur Fuel Oil). The Port of Los Angeles is the busiest shipping port in the U.S. by container volume. The Port of Houston is the largest U.S. port on the Gulf Coast and the busiest port in the U.S. by foreign waterborne tonnage.

As part of the conspiracy, Glencore Ltd. employees sought to unlawfully enrich themselves and Glencore Ltd. itself, by increasing profits and reducing costs on contracts to buy and sell physical fuel oil, as well as certain derivative positions that Glencore Ltd. held. The price terms of the physical contracts and derivative positions were set by reference to daily benchmark price assessments published by Platts—either Los Angeles 380 CST Bunker Fuel or U.S. Gulf Coast High-Sulfur Fuel Oil—on a certain day or days plus or minus a fixed premium. On these pricing days, Glencore Ltd. employees submitted orders to buy and sell (bids and offers) to Platts during the daily trading “window” for the Platts price assessments with the intent to artificially push the price assessment up or down.

For example, if Glencore Ltd. had a contract to buy fuel oil, Glencore Ltd. employees submitted offers during the Platts “window” for the express purpose of pushing down the price assessment and hence the price of the fuel oil that Glencore Ltd. purchased. The bids and offers were not submitted to Platts for any legitimate economic reason by Glencore Ltd. employees, but rather for the purpose of artificially affecting the relevant Platts price assessment so that the benchmark price, and hence the price of fuel oil that Glencore Ltd. bought from, and sold to, another party, did not reflect legitimate forces of supply and demand.

According to court documents, between approximately September 2012 and August 2016, Glencore Ltd. employees conspired to manipulate the price of fuel oil bought from, and sold to, a particular counterparty, Company A, through private, bilateral contracts, by manipulating the Platts price assessment for Los Angeles 380 CST Bunker Fuel. Between approximately January 2014 and February 2016, Glencore Ltd. employees also undertook a “joint venture” with Company A, which involved buying fuel oil from Company A at prices artificially depressed by Glencore Ltd.’s manipulation of the Platts Los Angeles 380 CST Bunker Fuel benchmark. Finally, between approximately January 2011 and August 2019, Glencore Ltd. employees conspired to manipulate the price of fuel oil bought and sold through private, bilateral contracts, as well as derivative positions, by manipulating the Platts price assessment for U.S. Gulf Coast High-Sulfur Fuel Oil.

A former Glencore Ltd. senior fuel oil trader, Emilio Jose Heredia Collado, of Lafayette, California, pled guilty in March 2021 to one count of conspiracy to engage in commodities price manipulation in connection with his trading activity related to the Platts Los Angeles 380 CST Bunker Fuel price assessment. Heredia’s sentencing is scheduled for June 17, 2022.

Glencore Ltd. pleaded guilty, pursuant to a plea agreement, to one count of conspiracy to engage in commodity price manipulation. Under the terms of Glencore Ltd.’s plea agreement regarding the commodity price manipulation conspiracy, which remains subject to court approval, Glencore Ltd. will pay a criminal fine of $341,221,682 and criminal forfeiture of $144,417,203. Under the terms of the plea agreement, the department will credit over $242 million in payments that the company makes to the CFTC. Glencore Ltd. also agreed to, among other things, continue to cooperate with the department in any ongoing investigations and prosecutions relating to the underlying misconduct, to modify its compliance program where necessary and appropriate, and to retain an independent compliance monitor for a period of three years.

A number of relevant considerations contributed to the department’s plea agreement with Glencore Ltd., including the nature and seriousness of the offense, Glencore Ltd.’s failure to fully and voluntarily self‑disclose the offense conduct to the department, Glencore Ltd.’s cooperation with the department’s investigation, and the state of Glencore Ltd.’s compliance program and the progress of its remediation.

A sentencing control date was scheduled in the Southern District of New York on October 3, 2022, before United States District Judge Lorna G. Schofield, who presided over Glencore’s guilty plea today.

Mr. Williams praised the outstanding investigative work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.