On July 17, 2026, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced a three-year deferred prosecution agreement (DPA) with the Scoular Company (Scoular), a Nebraska-based agricultural company that stores, processes, and transports grain, food, and animal feed ingredients, to resolve violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA). In connection with the DPA, Scoular will pay over $10 million. 

According to the DPA, the scheme included $400,000 in bribes paid to Mexican customs officials over a six-year period (amounting to almost $6,000/month) for the purpose of avoiding $6.5 million in fees and other costs associated with adverse determinations from Mexican inspectors. The payments are alleged to have been made through various customs brokers. 

The DPA includes Attachment C corporate compliance program commitments by Scoular that closely track the DOJ's standard language found in other recent FCPA enforcement resolutions. The DPA does not require the company to hire an Independent Compliance Monitor – instead, it requires the company to self-report on the status of remediation and implementation of an anti-corruption compliance program for the three-year term of the DPA. The DOJ credited Scoular's cooperation and timely remedial measures, recommending a 25 percent reduction in the statutory fine. The company did not receive voluntary disclosure credit.

Risks Related to Use of Mexican Customs Brokers. The DOJ alleged that Scoular relied on multiple customs brokers to ensure that shipments of corn and other products successfully traveled from the U.S. to Mexico. In emails, Scoular authorized brokers to make payments to avoid delays and potential fines from customs inspections finding dirt, soil, and other impurities in the shipped goods. The brokers paid approximately $2,000 in bribes per train shipment and invoiced Scoular for the bribes as reimbursement of reinspection fees. The DOJ cites evidence of knowledge and approval of Scoular employees of these payments. 

These facts highlight common bribery risks associated with interactions with Mexican customs brokers, and in particular the heightened risks posed by licensed brokers, who are required under Mexican law to be used for certain Mexican customs interactions. These risks are further elevated when the goods at issue present time-sensitive transportation needs, such as the perishable goods transported by Scoular. In these instances, officials can wield particular leverage given the economic loss that can result from delayed clearance. Food stuffs, medicine, and other goods subject to expiration dates or temperature controls might go bad, which can put heightened pressure on businesses to succumb to payments. Such pressures might have been at play in the Scoular case. 

Miller & Chevalier's 2024 Latin America Corruption Survey, performed in conjunction with various leading firms throughout the region, found that 60 percent of respondents with experience in Mexico cited significant corruption in Mexican customs, second only to Argentina, where customs risks are also notorious. 

Several other FCPA resolutions underscore the risks presented by reliance on customs brokers in Latin America. Biomet in Mexico, Ball Corporation in Argentina, Helmerich & Payne in Argentina and Venezuela, and – going all the way back to 2002 – American Rice in Haiti all highlight the potential risks generally presented by moving goods in and out of countries. In the case of Biomet, corrupt customs officials allowed the company to import dental implants into Mexico without proper registration and labeling, which, combined with improper conduct in Brazil, led to a $30 million settlement in 2017 with the DOJ and U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). 

Insights Into DOJ Internal Investigation Expectations. The press release and DPA suggest that the Trump administration's DOJ has expectations similar to those of prior administrations as to how companies' internal investigations should be conducted. The DPA highlights certain deficiencies early on in Scoular's internal investigation, indicating that internal investigation best practices (such as evidence preservation and proper scoping) continue to be relevant to a company's efforts to build credibility with the current DOJ. 

The DPA and press release also mention that critical evidence was found in WhatsApp chats. The Biden administration had placed a heavy emphasis on companies' efforts to secure access to instant messaging platforms used by employees for business in internal investigation fact finding. As a result, in recent years, many companies have invested in developing internal rules and protocols to govern instant messaging usage. One can infer that the DOJ continues to believe those efforts are important and that preserving those types of communications is critical to fully cooperate with DOJ investigations and obtain credit for that cooperation.

Central Role of U.S. Attorney's Offices. Scoular was investigated by the Western District of Texas, as well as the DOJ's Criminal Division. It is important to note that the February 5, 2025, memorandum of then-Attorney General Pam Bondi to DOJ personnel entitled "Total Elimination of Cartels and Transnational Criminal Organizations" directed U.S. Attorney's Offices to "lead the charge" against cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs). The memorandum suspended sections of the DOJ's Justice Manual that required central direction of FCPA investigations by the Criminal Division's Fraud Section. The apparent leadership of the Western District of Texas in this case might be a result of those DOJ policy changes.

The DOJ Cites Cartel Connection but Acknowledges No Awareness by Scoular. In its press release, the DOJ states: "A portion of those bribes ultimately benefited people who helped operate a cartel, even though Scoular did not know about it" [emphasis added]. The cartel ties were identified during the course of the investigation and factored into the DOJ's exercise of its discretion in favor of bringing an enforcement action. The release goes further to state, "This resolution shows that bribery and corruption not only undermine fair play and competition for Americans, but also hurt our national security interests in stopping the scourge of dangerous cartel activity." 

By citing a cartel connection, but also acknowledging the company was not aware of the connection, the DOJ underscores the ties between foreign bribery and organized crime support. This connection aligns with the enforcement priorities outlined in the June 2025 FCPA Guidelines. Those Guidelines stipulate that the DOJ will prioritize, among other things, cases that advance the Trump administration's policy goal of "Total Elimination of Cartels and Transnational Criminal Organizations" and provide, "one primary consideration in deciding whether to pursue an FCPA investigation or enforcement action is whether the alleged misconduct (1) is associated with the criminal operations of a Cartel or TCO; (2) utilizes money launderers or shell companies that engage in money laundering for Cartels or TCOs; or (3) is linked to employees of state-owned entities or other foreign officials who have received bribes from Cartels or TCOs." The Guidelines also state that the DOJ will prioritize cases that safeguard fair opportunities for U.S. companies. 

While the DOJ's investigation into Scoular likely began before the Guidelines were issued, the references to cartel links and the undermining of fair play and competition are consistent with those Guidelines. 

The DOJ Sets a High Standard for Addressing Cartel Risk. By citing cartel links as a driving factor in the action, but adding that Scoular was unaware of those links, the DOJ puts companies on notice of the types of transactions that are more likely to involve cartel links and signals that enhanced compliance is expected in these areas of business. 

U.S. Attorney Justin R. Simmons for the Western District of Texas stated it starkly: "Nothing crosses into or out of Mexico without the approval and payment to Mexican drug cartels. American businesses that engage in any cross-border trade bear a significant amount of responsibility to do so without benefitting those cartels and without threatening our national security" [emphasis added]. 

Such an affirmative statement has significant ramifications for the almost one trillion dollars in cross-border commerce that occurs between the U.S. and Mexico each year. Saying companies "bear a significant amount of responsibility" suggests that U.S. authorities are expecting companies to advance sophisticated compliance approaches to address these risks. 

If this is indeed the case, the assertion is complicated by the fact that, while outlining several compliance remediation steps Scoular undertook in connection with the FCPA settlement, those steps are common compliance strategies related to foreign bribery risk. There are no new compliance mechanisms listed that would appears to relate instead to TCO or Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) risk. For example, the DPA references that the company performed "an anti-corruption risk assessment," but not an assessment covering organized crime and cartel risks. It states that the company updated and launched "key policies and procedures related to its compliance program, including anti-corruption, bribery, conflicts of interest, and third party management," but makes no mention of extortion or security payment procedures or other policies relevant to cartel risks. It mentions anti-corruption training but not training on organized crime-related risks, nor is there any substantive discussion of specific cartel risks faced by Scoular. Thus, the resolution is of limited value in guiding companies on the specific types of controls and compliance safeguards that would be expected to address the significant cartel risks asserted.

For more information, please contact:

Matteson Ellis, mellis@milchev.com, 202-626-1477

Maria Elena Lapetina, mlapetina@milchev.com, 202-626-1586

Kathryn Cameron Atkinson, katkinson@milchev.com, 202-626-5957

Alejandra Montenegro Almonte, aalmonte@milchev.com, 202-626-5864

Joshua Drew, jdrew@milchev.com, 202-626-5811

Franco Jofré, fjofre@milchev.com, 202-626-1585

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