Three executives from a South Yorkshire-based metal manufacturer have been cleared of bribery charges in the latest failed prosecution brought by fraud investigators.
Michael Sorby, 75, Adrian Leek, 43, and David Justice, 48 — all executives at Sarclad, a business in Rotherham that is part of the Heico Companies group, of the United States — were acquitted yesterday of conspiracy to corrupt and bribe after a seven-week trial at Southwark crown court in central London.
The businessmen were brought to court in the wake of a deferred prosecution agreement struck in 2016 between Sarclad and the Serious Fraud Office. That deal, the second undertaken by the SFO since legislation allowed the US-style plea bargains, resulted in the company agreeing to pay a fine of more