Over 25 percent of all reported bribe demands in the United States were for bribes valued at more than $50,000, the report showed
LONDON (TrustLaw) – More than half of bribes reported in the United States since 2007 were made by individuals associated with the U.S. government, a report by TRACE International showed.
The anti-bribery business association’s 2011 BRIBEline United States Report, released on Tuesday, analysed 73 anonymous bribe demands reported between July 2007 and November 2011. Some of the bribes were demanded prior to this period and reported retroactively.
Over 25 percent of all reported bribe demands in the United States were for bribes valued at more than $50,000, the report showed.
TRACE’s founder and president Alexandra Wrage told TrustLaw she was not surprised by the low number of petty bribe demands in the United States, but she had not expected the bribe amounts demanded to be as high as they were.
“The United States is not a country where citizens are routinely extorted by the police as they are in Mexico and Russia, for example. On the other hand the very high dollar amounts associated with some demands was surprising,” Wrage said.
The report found that 56 percent of bribe demands reported in the United States were made by individuals associated with the U.S. government. Of these, 16 percent were government officials and 14 percent were members of the police, it added.
Seven bribes between 2002 and 2007 came from the Office of the President or Vice President, the report said. This amounts to 60 percent of bribes demanded by government officials which were reported to BRIBEline.
“The number of reports, at least through 2007, about the Office of the President and Vice President was startling. We expect to see those reports in kleptocratic regimes in developing countries, not here in the United States,” Wrage told TrustLaw.
“We should proceed with caution, however, as BRIBEline simply collects data. Reports are anonymous and no attempt is made to verify them,” Wrage added.
“At the same time, the reports about the Office of the President and Vice President were recorded approximately one per year so if they were frivolous or malicious it was a well organised effort,” she said.
Among other nations that U.S.-based TRACE analysed, individuals associated with government accounted for a far higher percentage of bribes being demanded. Whistleblowers from the Ukraine, for example, reported that 92 percent of bribe seekers were associated with their government, a 2009 TRACE report showed.
“The United States report is another important contribution to the prevention of bribery,” Wrage said in a statement.
“BRIBEline provides great insight into what bribe transactions look like. Companies, in turn, can shift employee training from an academic or legal analysis to a more practical, real-world discussion about what to look for and how to respond,” Wrage added.
(Editing by Rebekah Curtis)
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