The U.K.’s Serious Fraud Office (SFO) was criticized for its leadership, culture, and conduct in a report examining why the agency botched a key corruption case that has now seen three convictions overturned.
In December, an appeals court rebuked the SFO for its failure to disclose key evidence in the trial of former executives of oil and gas infrastructure company Unaoil who were alleged to have paid bribes to secure lucrative contracts in Iraq. The court singled out the agency’s “wholly inappropriate” contact with a “fixer,” David Tinsley, who proposed a backroom deal where key managers would be prosecuted while the company’s owners were left alone.
