Academi LLC, the company formerly known as Blackwater Worldwide and Xe Services, has agreed to pay a $7.5 million fine for 17 criminal violations spanning several years.
The company admitted to selling satellite phones and defense services to Sudan, illegally building armored personnel carriers, sending ammunition and body armor to Afghanistan and possessing unregistered firearms, including machine guns. They also trained Canadian forces without authorization from the U.S. Under the agreement, Academi will have its activities monitored during a period of supervision.
Late update: Academi issued this statement to TPM:
ACADEMI is pleased to reach this important agreement on this legacy matter. It is yet another step in our commitment to fairly resolve past issues and become the industry leader in governance, compliance, and regulatory matters. The agreement, which does not involve any guilty plea or admit to any violations, reflects the significant and tangible efforts that ACADEMI’s new ownership and leadership team have made in achieving that goal. The company is fully committed to this agreement and looks forward to successfully fulfilling its obligations on this legacy matter as we continue to lead by example in our regulatory and compliance efforts.
