Inotiv disclosed the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is investigating potential violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) by the pharmaceutical testing company regarding its importation of nonhuman primates (NHPs) from Asia.
In May, the SEC requested documents and information from Inotiv and two of its subsidiaries—Envigo Global Services and Orient BioResource Center—for the period beginning Dec. 1, 2017, to present, Inotiv revealed in a regulatory filing Friday.
The company said it is cooperating with the probe.
In November, Inotiv disclosed employees of its principal supplier of NHPs were indicted as part of a Department of Justice (DOJ) crackdown on an international primate smuggling ring. The action brought by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida included charges of conspiring to illegally import NHPs into the United States against six employees across Hong Kong-based Vanny Resources Holdings and its subsidiaries and two Cambodian government officials.
Inotiv’s subsidiaries were previously subpoenaed as part of the DOJ’s investigation; the company said it has not since received any additional subpoenas regarding the matter.
Another pharmaceutical company, Charles River Laboratories, disclosed last week it is being investigated by the SEC regarding its sourcing of NHPs from Asia, though it did not specify whether the probe related to potential violations of the FCPA.
Other agencies, including the Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, have warned of potential financial crime risks associated with wildlife trafficking in recent years.
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