- The executives are accused of participating in a scheme to bribe Philippine officials
- They allegedly used “coded language” to refer to a “secret fund”; the couple is placed on leave
Three current and former Smartmatic executives are accused of running an alleged bribery scheme to use kickbacks related to the use of the company’s voting machine technology.
The indictment, filed Thursday in Florida, does not name the firm, which gained notoriety in 2000 when allies of Donald Trump launched discredited allegations that its equipment was part of a vote-stealing conspiracy theory.
She is embroiled in a lengthy defamation lawsuit against Fox Corp. in which she is seeking $2.7 billion in damages.
Three men, including Venezuelan Roger Alejandro Pinate Martinez, 49, and Florida resident Jorge Miguel Vasquez, 62, a U.S. citizen and resident of Davie, Florida, are accused of bribing the former head of the Philippines’ election commission for $1 million as part of the alleged scheme.
“These bribes were allegedly paid to obtain and retain business related to the provision of voting machines and election services for the 2016 Philippine elections and to secure contract payments, including the release of value-added tax payments,” according to a Justice Department statement on the charges.
The bribes were allegedly paid through a “secret fund” used to increase the cost of each machine.
Andres Bautista, a former top Philippine election official, was also identified.
Two Smartmatic employees have been indicted by a grand jury for participating in a bribery scheme in the Philippines
‘To conceal and disguise the nature and purpose of the corrupt payments, the co-conspirators used coded language to refer to the secret fund and caused the creation of fraudulent contracts and false loan agreements to justify the transfers. The co-conspirators then allegedly laundered funds related to the bribery scheme through bank accounts located in Asia, Europe, and the United States, including the Southern District of Florida, according to the release.
The company admitted Two employees were charged, noting in a statement that there were no allegations related to fraud in the actual vote in the 2016 Philippines election, but noting that the allegations had not yet been proven in court.
“Regardless of the veracity of the allegations and although our accused employees remain innocent until proven guilty, we have placed both employees on leave, effective immediately,” the firm said.
Smartmatic has filed a $2.7 million defamation lawsuit against Fox Corp. and Donald Trump ally Rudy Giuliani and other defendants
“No electoral fraud has been reported and Smartmatic has not been charged. Voters around the world should be assured that the elections they participate in are conducted with the utmost integrity and transparency. These are the values that Smartmatic lives by,” he said.
The firm played a prominent role in the legal battle after the 2020 election, where Trump allies accused it of being part of a vote-rigging scheme.
The firm sued Fox News and Newsmax for defamation, in a case that a New York judge allowed to go forward in January.
Fox reached a $788 million settlement with another voting machine company, Dominion Voting Systems.
Smartmatic is suing the networks, accusing them of airing claims about the 2020 election that they knew were false, while guests including former Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani and attorney Sidney Powell outlined elaborate conspiracy theories on air. The networks deny the allegations and are fighting them in court.
Pinate and Vasquez are charged with conspiracy to violate the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), an anti-bribery statute, and violating that law. Bautista, Pinate, Vasquez and a fourth person, Venezuelan-Israeli citizen Elie Moreno, 44, are charged with money laundering.
“We look forward to arguing our case in court,” a Fox News spokesperson told DailyMail.com.