UK fraud office starts Airbus criminal bribery probe

Chicago

AIRBUS Group SE said the UK Serious Fraud Office has opened a criminal investigation into allegations of fraud, bribery and corruption relating to some of its third- party consultants.

The Toulouse, France-based planemaker said in a statement on Sunday that it's cooperating with investigators probing its civil aviation business. Airbus had flagged to UK regulators and the European Export Credit Agencies earlier this year "misstatements and omissions" involving the outside contractors in some export financing applications, which it found through an internal probe.