Former NGO Head Sentenced for Violating FCPA

Cary Yan, former president of a New York-based non-governmental organization, was sentenced to three years and six months in prison for paying bribes to Marshall Islands officials in violation of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, DOJ announced. Yan conspired with his assistant, Gina Zhou, as part of a bribery scheme to pass legislation that would benefit Yan's business interests. Zhou was sentenced in February to two years and seven months in prison.

From 2016 to 2020, Yan worked with others, including Zhou, to pay tens of thousands of dollars in bribes to high-level Marshall Island officials, including members of the legislature, for their support of legislation creating a semi-autonomous area called the Rongelap Atoll Special Administrative Region, DOJ said May 16. Yan used his NGO to carry out the scheme.