WASHINGTON, Dec. 18 (Xinhua) -- Two former senior executives of the U.S. subsidiary of Panasonic Corp. were charged with knowingly violating accounting and documentation rules, according to a statement released by U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Tuesday.
SEC said that Paul A. Margis, former CEO and president of Panasonic Avionics Corp., paid over 1.76 million U.S. dollars to several consultants, including a government official who helped Panasonic Avionics seize and retain business from a state-owned airline in return.
However, SEC said that Panasonic Avionics falsely recorded these payments to consultants, and Margis "circumvented company procedures for engaging the consultants."
Moreover, SEC criticized that Margis made materially false or misleading statements to the company's auditor.
Besides, SEC said that Takeshi "Tyrone" Uonaga, former CFO of Panasonic Avionics, improperly recorded 82 million dollars in revenue "based on a backdated contract" and made "false representations" to the company's auditor.
SEC said Margis and Uonaga agreed to pay penalties of 75,000 dollars and 50,000 dollars respectively without admitting or denying SEC's findings. Meanwhile, Uonaga was suspended from working as an accountant for five years.
"Holding individuals accountable, particularly senior executives, is critical," said Antonia Chion, associate director of the SEC's Enforcement Division.