The UK’s fraud prosecutor settled an employment dispute with a senior investigator who was fired after leading a sprawling bribery probe.
(Bloomberg) — The UK’s fraud prosecutor settled an employment dispute with a senior investigator who was fired after leading a sprawling bribery probe.
Tom Martin, who sued the Serious Fraud Office for unfair dismissal, settled the suit before a hearing to determine damages was scheduled to start on Tuesday, according to a spokesperson at the agency.
A London employment judge had previously ruled that Martin was unfairly dismissed in 2018 over an incident at a bar where he allegedly verbally abused an FBI agent. The judge said Martin had not used an expletive, although he had probably called the FBI agent a “spy” and a “quisling.”
Read More: A Heated Round of Drinks With the FBI Got a UK Agent Fired
The judge ruled that the allegations against Martin were made in an attempt to remove him from the Unaoil bribery probe. The SFO had an oil executive’s conviction overturned by a London judge over disclosure failures.
“Since 2016, we have reformed the way in which we deal with complaints and investigate staff conduct,” an SFO spokesperson said. “As the UK authority responsible for fighting economic crime, we are committed to maintaining professional and positive working relationships with our staff.”
A lawyer for Martin did not immediately comment.
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