SEOUL– Seven construction firms were sentenced to 20 million won (US$16,900) in fines each on Wednesday for rigging bids to win about two dozen U.S. military construction projects in turn for two and a half years.
The firms took turns to win 23 contracts totaling 43.9 billion won since September 2016. The Seoul Eastern District Court also sentenced seven company executives to fines ranging between 7 million won and 12 million won, respectively.
During court hearings, the defendants admitted to their wrongdoings, saying the companies had reached a consensus that there is no need to compete to win the United States’ Far East District (FED) projects, as they are not profitable in most cases.
FED projects refer to the U.S. defense department’s construction projects to build facilities for the U.S. soldiers based in East Asia and their families.
Source: Yonhap News Agency