Lafarge pleads guilty to supporting Islamic State, will pay U.S. $778 million - Reuters

NEW YORK, Oct 18 (Reuters) - French cement shaper Lafarge pleaded blameworthy connected Tuesday to a U.S. complaint that it made payments to groups designated arsenic terrorists by the United States, including Islamic State.

The admittance successful Brooklyn national tribunal marked the archetypal clip a institution has pleaded blameworthy successful the United States to charges of providing worldly enactment to a violent organization. Lafarge, which became portion of Swiss-listed Holcim (HOLN.S) successful 2015, agreed to wage $778 cardinal successful forfeiture and fines arsenic portion of the plea agreement.

U.S. prosecutors said that Lafarge paid Islamic State and al Nusra Front, done intermediaries, the equivalent of astir $5.92 million.

Lafarge is besides facing charges of complicity successful crimes against humanity successful Paris for keeping a mill moving successful Syria aft a struggle broke retired successful 2011.

Lafarge yet evacuated the cement works successful September 2014, U.S. prosecutors said. At that point, Islamic State took possession of the remaining cement and sold it for the equivalent of $3.21 million, prosecutors said.

U.S. Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco said connected Tuesday during a quality league that the company's actions "reflect firm transgression that has reached a caller debased and a precise acheronian place."

"Business with terrorists cannot beryllium concern arsenic usual," Monaco added.

The cement shaper antecedently admitted aft an interior probe that its Syrian subsidiary paid equipped groups to assistance support unit astatine the plant. But it had denied charges that it was complicit successful crimes against humanity.

Lafarge Chair Magali Anderson said successful tribunal connected Tuesday that from August 2013 until November 2014 erstwhile executives of the institution "knowingly and willfully agreed to enactment successful a conspiracy to marque and authorize payments intended for the payment of assorted equipped groups successful Syria."

"The individuals liable for this behaviour person been separated from the institution since astatine slightest 2017," she said.

Monaco said that French authorities person arrested immoderate of the executives progressive but did not supply names. Court records notation to six unnamed Lafarge executives.

In a statement, Holcim noted that nary of the behaviour progressive Holcim, "which has ne'er operated successful Syria, oregon immoderate Lafarge operations oregon employees successful the United States, and it is successful stark opposition with everything that Holcim stands for."

Holcim said that erstwhile Lafarge executives progressive successful the behaviour concealed it from Holcim, arsenic good arsenic from outer auditors.

The SIX Swiss Exchange suspended trading successful Holcim shares earlier the news.

Reporting by Luc Cohen successful New York and Karen Freifeld; Editing by Noeleen Walder and Lisa Shumaker

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