Colombia fines, bans Odebrecht over graft

BOGOTA: A Colombian court has fined Brazilian multinational Odebrecht more than $250 million and banned it from tendering for state contracts for 10 years after finding it guilty of corruption to secure contracts.

The Brazilian firm has acknowledged being at the centre of a massive graft scandal, handing out more than $750 million in bribes across 12 mostly Latin American countries to secure infrastructure contracts.

Among those named in the court ruling late Thursday were Odebrecht´s Colombian partners, including Episol -- a subsidiary of the Corficolombiana group owned by the country´s richest man, Luis Carlos Sarmiento.

The court ordered the seizure of bank accounts, goods and dividends obtained by the companies involved.

Odebrecht has admitted doling out $32.5 million in bribes in Colombia alone to help secure public works contracts, including the South American country´s biggest infrastructure project, the Ruta del Sol II highway linking the center of the country with the north. The court ruled that the $252 million fine can only be used to complete the project.