The company entered into a three-year Deferred Prosecution Agreement (DPA) with the U.S. Department of Justice after being charged with conspiracy to violate the anti-bribery provisions of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA).

According to the case materials, from 2013 to 2019, Scoular used several customs brokers to transport corn and other agricultural products from the United States to Mexico. When crossing the border, shipments were subject to inspection by Mexican authorities for soil, dirt and other contaminants.

To ensure that shipments could cross the border when such contaminants were detected during inspections, Scoular employees authorized third-party customs brokers to make payments to Mexican officials. The bribes typically amounted to approximately $2,000 per train. The brokers subsequently invoiced Scoular for the corresponding amounts, describing them as re-inspection expenses, and the company reimbursed the costs. Employees also discussed shipments and payments via WhatsApp.

In total, Scoular authorized more than $400,000 in bribes, enabling the company to avoid more than $6.5 million in fees and other expenses associated with delays and adverse inspection outcomes.

The investigation also found that some of the funds ultimately reached individuals associated with cartel-related criminal activity along the U.S.-Mexico border. As emphasized in the DPA, neither Scoular nor its employees were aware of this – the Department of Justice specifically cited this circumstance among the factors considered in entering into the DPA.

Under the agreement, Scoular will pay a criminal penalty of $9.77 million and forfeit an additional $414,400 in proceeds derived from the criminal scheme. During the term of the DPA, the company must continue cooperating with law enforcement authorities and enhancing its compliance and ethics program designed to prevent and detect violations of the FCPA and other anti-corruption requirements, as well as periodically report to the Department of Justice on the implementation of these measures.

In determining the penalty, the Department of Justice took into account Scoular’s cooperation with the investigation and the remedial measures adopted by the company. In particular, Scoular conducted an internal investigation, provided information about individuals involved in the misconduct, revised the structure of its compliance function and third-party procedures, discontinued the use of customs brokers associated with the re-inspection payments, strengthened financial controls, and updated its anti-corruption procedures and employee training. As a result, the criminal penalty was reduced by 25% from the bottom of the applicable sentencing range.