Source: Exclusive: US prosecutors recommend DOJ criminally charge Boeing as deadline looms | Reuters
U.S. prosecutors are recommending to senior Justice Department officials that criminal charges be brought against Boeing (BA.N), opens new tab after finding the planemaker violated a settlement related to two fatal crashes, two people familiar with the matter told Reuters.
The Justice Department must decide by July 7 whether to prosecute Boeing. The recommendation of prosecutors handling the case has not been previously reported.
In May, officials determined the company breached a 2021 agreement that had shielded Boeing from a criminal charge of conspiracy to commit fraud arising from two fatal crashes in 2018 and 2019 involving the 737 MAX jet.
Under the 2021 deal, the Justice Department agreed not to prosecute Boeing over allegations it defrauded the Federal Aviation Administration so long as the company overhauled its compliance practices and submitted regular reports. Boeing also agreed to pay $2.5 billion to settle the investigation.
Boeing declined to comment. It has previously said it has “honored the terms” of the 2021 settlement, which had a three-year term and is known as a deferred prosecution agreement. Boeing has told the Justice Department it disagrees with its determination that the company violated the settlement, Reuters reported this month.
A spokesperson for the Justice Department declined to comment.
The two sides are in discussions over a potential resolution to the Justice Department’s investigation and there is no guarantee officials will move forward with charges, the two sources said. The internal Justice Department deliberations remain ongoing and no final decisions have been reached, they added.
两名知情人士告诉路透社，美国检察官在发现波音公司违反了与两起致命坠机事件相关的和解协议后，建议司法部高级官员对波音公司提起刑事指控。 司法部必须在 7 月 7 日之前决定是否起诉波音公司。此前并未报道过处理此案的检察官的建议。 今年 5 月，官员们认定该公司违反了 2021 年协议，该协议使波音公司免受因 2018 年和 2019 年两起涉及 737 MAX 喷气式飞机致命空难的欺诈刑事指控。 根据 2021 年的协议，司法部同意，只要波音公司彻底改革其规定做法并定期提交报告，就不会因波音公司欺骗联邦航空管理局而起诉该公司。波音公司还同意支付 25 亿美元来解决调查。 波音公司拒绝发表评论。该公司此前曾表示，已“遵守 2021 年和解协议的条款”，该和解协议的期限为三年，被称为延期起诉协议。据路透社本月报道，波音公司已告知司法部，它不同意司法部关于该公司违反和解协议的决定。 司法部发言人拒绝置评。 两位消息人士称，双方正在讨论司法部调查的可能解决方案，但不能保证官员会继续提出指控。他们补充说，司法部内部审议仍在进行中，尚未做出最终决定。
