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US: DOJ work lands water freight price-fixing jail time

By  |  December 9, 2013

The US Department of Justice announced its investigation into water freight price-fixing has landed an ex-executive in jail.

Former head of Sea Star Line LLC Frank Peake was sentenced to five years in prison Friday, as well as a $25,000 fine. The sanctions follow the DOJ’s probe into Sea Star Line and other sea freight carriers for fixing prices of cargo transported between the US and Puerto Rico.

In a statement, DOJ antitrust head Bill Baer said the sentence “reflects the serious harm these conspirators inflicted on American consumers, both in the continental United States and in Puerto Rico.”

The investigation has so far resulted in guilty pleas by the three largest water carriers that service US-Puerto Rico routes. More than $46 million in fines have been issued.

A judge ordered Sea Star Line to pay $14.2 million for its role in the cartel in 2011.

Full Content: The Maritime Executive

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