WASHINGTON (Legal Newsline) — The U.S. Department of Justice announced Oct. 18 that Nippon Chemi-Con Corporation in Japan has been indicted by a federal grand jury for participating in a conspiracy to fix prices for electrolytic capacitors sold in the United States.
According to allegations, Nippon conducted a scheme of price fixing from as early as September 1997 until January 2014. The company allegedly conspired to suppress and eliminate competition for electrolytic capacitors.
Four of the company’s executives also have been indicted: Takuro Isawa, Takeshi Matsuzaka, Yasutoshi Ohno and Kaname Takahashi. The defendants not only fixed prices, the charges allege, but conspired to conceal the conspiracy by using code names and providing misleading justifications for prices and bids.
“Today’s indictment affirms the Antitrust Division’s commitment to holding companies accountable for conspiring to cheat American consumers,” said assistant attorney general Makan Delrahim of the Department of Justice. “The division will prosecute companies—no matter where they are located—that violate U.S. antitrust laws.”
Eight companies and 10 individuals have been charged with participating in this conspiracy.