Antitrust Law Daily Wrap Up, ANTITRUST NEWS: Former Bridgestone executive agrees to serve prison time, pay fine for fixing auto parts prices, (Apr 17, 2014)

By Jeffrey May, J.D.

Another former Bridgestone executive has been charged with participating in the auto parts price fixing conspiracy, the Department of Justice announced yesterday. One day after a current company executive and two former executives were indicted in the ongoing federal antitrust probe, the government disclosed that Yusuke Shimasaki had agreed to plead guilty, to serve prison time, and to pay a fine for his role in the conspiracy (U.S. v. Shimasaki, Criminal No. 3:14-cr-00139-JZ).

According to a one-count felony charge filed on April 16 in the federal district court in Toledo, Shimasaki conspired to allocate sales of, to rig bids for, and to fix the prices of automotive anti-vibration rubber parts sold to auto makers. Shimasaki allegedly participated in the conspiracy from around 2001 until the end of 2008. During that time period, he was employed by Bridgestone as a sales manager, an executive vice president at Bridgestone APM Co., in Findlay, Ohio, and as a general sales manager, the Justice Department said. Pursuant to an agreement between the government and the defendant, the statute of limitations has been tolled since May 8, 2013.

Under a plea agreement, which is subject to court approval, Shimasaki would serve 18 months in a U.S. prison and pay a $20,000 criminal fine. Shimasaki also has agreed to cooperate in the Justice Department’s investigation.

The charge against Shimasaki follows a one-count indictment returned by a Cleveland federal grand jury on April 15 against Yasuo Ryuto, Yoshiyuki Tanaka, and Isao Yoshida. Tanaka is currently manager of the anti-vibration rubber original equipment international planning section. Ryuto and Yoshida are former Bridgestone employees.

To date, 33 individuals have been charged in the government’s ongoing investigation into price fixing and bid rigging in the auto parts industry, according to the Department of Justice. In addition, 26 companies, including Bridgestone, have pleaded guilty or agreed to plead guilty and have agreed to pay a total of more than $2.29 billion in fines. In February, Bridgestone agreed to plead guilty and to pay a $425 million criminal fine for its role in the conspiracy.

Companies: Bridgestone Corp.

News: Antitrust AntitrustDivisionNews