The DOJ announced today that Los Angeles-area film executives Gerald Green and Patricia Green were found guilty on Friday, September 11, of conspiracy to violate the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) and money laundering laws, as well as substantive violations of the FCPA and U.S. money laundering laws. The convictions relate to “a sophisticated bribery scheme that enabled the defendants to obtain a series of Thai government contracts, including valuable contracts to manage and operate Thailand’s yearly film festival.”
The two defendants were charged on March 11, 2009 with paying kickbacks to the former governor of the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) in exchange for receiving contracts to manage and operate Thailand’s yearly “Bangkok International Film Festival,” as well as contracts to provide an elite tourism “privilege card” marketed to wealthy foreigners.
Specifically, the DOJ alleged, the Greens paid approximately $1.8 million in bribes to the former governor through numerous bank accounts in Singapore, the United Kingdom and the Isle of Jersey in the name of the former governor’s daughter and a friend of the former governor. The contracts received by the Greens allegedly resulted in more than $13.5 million in revenue to businesses they owned. Sentencing has been set for Dec. 17, 2009, before the Honorable George Wu in the Central District of California.
