Amazon has received FAA approval to move forward with its drone delivery program. Susan Lee with Fox Business’ More.
A federal grand jury in Washington state has indicted six people on charges of bribing Amazon.com employees to gain access to third-party vendors on the retailer’s online storefront.
According to Seattle’s U.S. Attorney’s Office fee, each of the defendants provided consulting services to vendors on Amazon’s Marketplace, and they paid e-commerce merchant giant workers a collective Rs. Bribed more than 100,000.
Join the M 110M Funding Round of Amazon, Stephen Currents Home Fitness Brand
The accused include two former Amazon employees who prosecutors say bribed company employees to re-establish sales of substandard or even dangerous products.
Ritter / Mike Seger / File photo
The Wall Street Journal reported Friday that they also worked to attack customer competitors and suspend accounts and share ownership details about Amazon’s algorithms for inventory, using inside caches.
In exchange for the money, people inside Amazon provided defendants with access to proprietary Amazon data and – in some cases – certified access to the company’s systems, lawyers insisted.
In a statement, Amazon said the company supported the investigation and worked with federal agencies involved in the case.
“Bad actors like in this case are attracted to the developed community of honest entrepreneurs that make up most of our vendors.”
The journal reports that Joseph Nilsson, 1, and Kristen Lexie, 326, provided consulting services through a company called Digital Checkmate Inc.; Ephraim Rosenberg, 45, led a similar effort known as Amazon Sellers Group TG; Hadis Nuhanovich, 30, provided fee-based consulting and led his own third-party seller accounts; And former Amazon employees 27, Rohit Kadimiseti and 31, Nishad Kunju have also become advisors to third-party sellers.
At least 10 Amazon employees and contractors accepted bribes into the scheme, prosecutors said.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office said the group faces up to 20 years in prison and a further fine on charges of wire fraud and wire-fraud conspiracy. An additional charge of conspiracy to use a communications facility to pay a commercial bribe can carry up to five years in prison and a fine.
A group of six people arrived in Seattle’s U.S. on October 15. Will attend the district court.
Click here to read more on Fox Business
U.S. Attorney Brian T. “As the world moves rapidly towards commerce online commerce, we must ensure that the unjust benefits gained through bribery and kick-backs do not lead to market corruption,” Moore said in a statement. “The ultimate victim of this criminal behavior is the buying public.”
Business transactions on Amazon’s Marketplace are under increasing regulatory scrutiny over the past year, and Amazon has struggled to curb sales of defective products.
In April, The Wall Street Journal reported that the tech giant was using third-party sales data to launch its rival products, prompting a congressional investigation based on antitrust.
