Executive Bribery Scandal Rocks Voting Tech Firm Smartmatic

Three Smartmatic executives face charges of bribing a Philippine election official to secure business, U.S. prosecutors say. Smartmatic’s president, co-founder, and two others are accused of paying $1 million in bribes. The company is also suing Fox News for defaming it during the 2020 U.S. election.

Three executives from the voting technology company Smartmatic have been indicted for allegedly funneling $1 million in bribes to a former Philippine election official, according to U.S. federal prosecutors in Florida.

Smartmatic's president and co-founder, Roger Alejandro Pinate Martinez, aged 49, along with two co-defendants, face charges of foreign bribery and money laundering. The company itself, headquartered in London with a U.S. subsidiary based in Florida, was not named as a defendant by the U.S. Department of Justice.

Documents pertinent to the case remain unavailable to the public as of Friday, and legal representatives for the accused have not been identified. A Smartmatic spokesperson did not respond to a request for comments.

The indictment follows Smartmatic's litigation against Fox Corp. and conservative media figures, seeking billions in damages for defamation claims tied to the 2020 U.S. presidential election. While it's uncertain how the indictment will influence the defamation cases, Fox could potentially use criminal case evidence to strengthen its defense.

(With inputs from agencies.)