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For more than a decade, Eli Lilly and Co. was under investigation for foreign bribery charges that now date back 20 years.
Finally, last month, the U.S. Department of Justice told Lilly its investigation was over.
The Indianapolis-based drugmaker disclosed the end of the bribery probe in its annual report, filed late last week.
The bribery investigation started in August 2003 when the U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission announced it was checking whether Lilly’s subsidiary in Poland had breached the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977.
The SEC later expanded its inquiry to include Lilly operations in other countries, including Brazil, China and Russia. Also, the Department of Justice joined the investigation, pursuing potential criminal charges.
In December 2012, Lilly paid $29.4 million to settle with the SEC, without admitting or denying allegations that it paid off government officials to obtain government contracts. In China, Lilly officials allegedly falsified expense reports to provide spa treatments, jewelry, and other gifts and cash payments to government-employed physicians, according to the SEC.
That settlement related to activities alleged to have taken place from 1994 through 2009.
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