Ex-Martinair vice president gets 8 months in jail, pays US$20,000 fine

A MARTINAIR executive has accepted a plea bargain that will put him in a US jail for eight months for his role in a international air cargo price-fixing scheme, the US Justice Department has announced.

The Dutch airline's ex-cargo vice president Franciscus Johannes de Jong will also pay a US$20,000 fine under the deal that is still subject to court approval, said the department announcement.

So far, four executives and 15 airlines that pleaded guilty or agreed to penalties in the investigation and will pay fines surpassing $1.6 billion. Three men have already received jail sentences.

The prosecution said Mr de Jong and the other accused met and/or communicated to set prices on air cargo between April 2002 and February 2006.

By fixing prices for the shipment of products to and from the United States, this cartel targeted a critical piece of our country's economy, said prosecutor Scott Hammond.
 

Source: Transportweekly