Cement company fined almost $800 million after pleading guilty to funding Islamic State

A French cement company has been ordered to pay almost USD $800 million (AUD $1.2 billion, £713m) for sending money to Islamic State.

The US Justice Department announced that cement company giant Lafarge has to fork out the enormous sum after pleading guilty to supporting the terrorist group in a federal court in Brooklyn earlier this week.

Lafarge Cement admitted to providing money to ISIS following an internal audit.

It was reported by The New York Times that executives from Lafarge met with members of ISIS in Turkey in 2012.

Kristoffer Tripplaar / Alamy Stock Photo

The two parties struck a deal where Lafarge agreed to make monthly payments to the terrorist group so long as they didn’t attack their factory, which was located just south of the Turkish border in Syria.

Prosecutors believe this is the first time a company was charged with aiding a terrorist group.

“The defendants partnered with ISIS, one of the most brutal terrorist organizations the world has ever known, to enhance profits and increase market share, all while ISIS engaged in a notorious campaign of violence,” Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco said, according to The New York Times.

Prosecutors also revealed that the company hid payments by falsifying records and backdating contracts.

According to Reuters, ​​the company paid ISIS USD$17 million (AUD $27m, £15m) between August 2013 and October 2014 to keep their company running. 

However, in 2014, the plant was evacuated after ISIS seized control of the region.

Ebrahem Khadir/ UPI/Alamy

In a statement, the company, which Holcim now owns, said that Lafarge is no longer affiliated with the group and took accountability for its actions.

They wrote: “Lafarge SA and LCS have accepted responsibility for the actions of the individual executives involved, whose behavior was in flagrant violation of Lafarge’s Code of Conduct. 

“We deeply regret that this conduct occurred and have worked with the U.S. Department of Justice to resolve this matter."

They added that none of these actions occurred while Holcim owned Lafarge. 

They wrote: “We deeply regret that this conduct occurred and have worked with the U.S. Department of Justice to resolve this matter.”

While the US Department of Justice admitted that higher-up executives at the cement company initiated payments, no individuals have been charged as of yet, as per BBC News.

The company will have to fork out USD $778 million (AUD $1.2b or £687.2m) after pleading guilty.

Lafarge also faces charges of complicity in crimes against humanity in France over the deal they struck in Syria; however, the company has denied the claims.