A federal grand jury in Miami has charged the co-founder of Smartmatic, a voting machine maker that is separately suing Fox News for defamation, with paying $1 million in bribe payments to officials in the Philippines.
The indictment announced Thursday by the Justice Department said Smartmatic President Roger Piñate and two other employees allegedly made illegal payments to a former Philippines elections commissioner in order to get its voting machines and services used in the country’s 2016 election.
The department said the payments were funded by a slush fund the executives created by inflating the cost of the voting machines. The money was allegedly laundered through bank accounts in Asia, Europe and the U.S.
Piñate, a Venezuelan citizen, Smartmatic executive Jorge Vasquez and former executive Elie Moreno are each charged with one count of conspiracy to violate the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, which forbids corporate bribery abroad.
Boca Raton, Fla.-based Smartmatic is currently waging defamation suits against Fox News and its smaller competitor Newsmax. The company said the conservative networks aired false statements about its machines being used to commit voter fraud during the 2020 presidential election, charges that were pushed by former President Trump and his allies.
Smartmatic’s machines were only used in Los Angeles County during the 2020 presidential contest, not in any of the states where Trump said voter fraud was committed.
The firm’s case against Newsmax is scheduled for a Delaware trial in September. The case against Fox News, in which Smartmatic is asking for $2.7 billion in damages, would go to court next year in New York unless it’s settled.
In a statment, Smartmatic said it had placed the two indicted current employees on leaves of absence, effective immediately. The company also noted that the case has nothing to do with voter fraud.
“No voter fraud has been alleged and Smartmatic is not indicted,” the company said. “Voters worldwide must be assured that the elections they participate in are conducted with the utmost integrity and transparency.”
Still, Fox News is likely to cite the Justice Department indictment in defense of its case. Fox News had no comment on the matter. “We look forward to defending our case in court,” a representative said.
