Serious fraud office investigate News International

This entry was posted on Saturday, July 30th, 2011 at 6:22 pm

The Serious Fraud Office has said it will give ?full consideration? to a request by a Labour MP to investigate out-of-court settlements paid by News International, to the alleged victims of the organisation?s phone hacking scandal.

The case continues to dominate the political and media landscape of the UK, following several high-profile arrests and a committee grilling of Rupert Murdoch. Now it looks set to develop further, as the BBC has reported that the company may be subject to an investigation from the US Department of Justice.

Robert Preston has reported that the Serious Fraud Office is rumoured to have been approached by the Department of Justice for information about how to proceed with the investigation.

It is illegal for any American company to bribe overseas officials for information under the foreign corrupt practices act.

Although the Department of Justice is not rumoured to have started its investigation yet, if it has been in communication with the Serious Fraud Office in the UK, the legal battle is looking ready to head stateside sooner rather than later.

The share prices have already dropped since the UK started investigating the News Of The World?s alleged payments to the Police. The Murdochs will be worried that if the serious fraud investigation spreads to America, there could be a further drop in the company’s share prices.