China indicts workers with Rio Tinto mining company in bribery, theft case
Four men with the British-Australian outfit are accused of soliciting bribes from steel companies and stealing commercial secrets. The arrests have strained the Chinese-Australian trade relationship.
By David Pierson
Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
6:58 AM PST, February 10, 2010
Reporting from Beijing
China has indicted four employees of the British-Australian mining giant Rio Tinto for alleged bribery and theft of commercial secrets, a move that paves the way for a trial in a case that has already elicited widespread international criticism.
The four were arrested last July and include Australian citizen Stern Hu, the company's leading iron-ore negotiator in China.
They "took advantage of their position and sought and accepted huge amounts of bribes from many Chinese steel companies," said a brief online report Wednesday from the New China News Agency that cited China's prosecutor's office.
"They also obtained commercial secrets from Chinese steel companies through methods including inducement and caused extremely serious consequences," the report said The arrests have tested a $54.5-billion Sino-Australian trade relationship. Australia supplies China with about 40% of its iron ore so is vital to its continued urbanization and national development.
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http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-china-mining-indict11-2010feb11,0,7072194.story
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