Charles Hunter Hobson, Foreign Bribery, Money Laundering, and Wire Fraud, Pennsylvania 2020

Former Coal Company Executive Charged with Foreign Bribery and Money Laundering

A former coal company executive, Charles Hunter Hobson, 46, of Knoxville, Tennessee, has been arrested and charged with violating the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), laundering funds, and receiving kickbacks as part of an alleged scheme to pay bribes to government officials in Egypt.

According to the indictment, Hobson engaged in the bribery and money laundering scheme between late 2016 and early 2020. During this time, he was the Vice President of a coal company in Pennsylvania and responsible for the company’s business relationship with Al Nasr Company for Coke and Chemicals (Al Nasr).

Hobson and others, including Company 1’s sales intermediary, allegedly paid bribes to Al Nasr officials in Egypt to obtain approximately $143 million in coal contracts for Company 1. The indictment alleges that Hobson conspired to secretly receive a portion of the commissions paid to the sales intermediary as kickbacks.

Hobson is charged with one count of conspiracy to violate the FCPA, two counts of violating the FCPA, one count of conspiracy to launder money, two counts of money laundering, and one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. He faces up to five years in prison for each of the bribery conspiracy and bribery charges, and up to 20 years in prison for each of the money laundering conspiracy, money laundering, and wire fraud charges.

The indictment alleges that Hobson and others caused Company 1 to transfer the corrupt commission payments from a bank account in the United States to a bank account in the United Arab Emirates. The indictment also alleges that Hobson conspired with others to secretly receive a portion of the commissions paid to the sales intermediary as kickbacks.

Hobson is currently in custody and will make his initial court appearance this afternoon in the Eastern District of Tennessee. The FBI’s International Corruption Unit in Washington, D.C., and the Washington Field Office are investigating the case.

Charles Hunter Hobson, 46, of Knoxville, Tennessee. Defendant: Charles Hunter Hobson. Charges: One count of conspiracy to violate the FCPA, two counts of violating the FCPA, one count of conspiracy to launder money, two counts of money laundering, and one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. City and State: Knoxville, Tennessee. Date: 2020. Sentence: Up to 5 years in prison for each of the bribery conspiracy and bribery charges, and up to 20 years in prison for each of the money laundering conspiracy, money laundering, and wire fraud charges. Dollar Amounts: $143 million in coal contracts for Company 1.

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