Hewlett-Packard to pay $55m to settle US fraud charges
01 Sep 2010
Source: BBC News
Computer giant Hewlett-Packard has agreed to pay US$55m (£35.5m) to settle claims it paid kickbacks in relation to US government contracts. Hewlett-Packard was accused of paying other companies so they would recommend their products to government buyers. The US Government's chief procurement body, the GSA, entered into a contract with Hewlett-Packard in 2002.
It is thought to be one of the largest such settlement figures achieved by the US Department of Justice. The claims were first made in a lawsuit by two whistleblowers in 2004. A spokesman for the US Department of Justice said the the government would always take action against companies seeking "to taint the government procurement process with illegal kickbacks".
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