Daimler AG has agreed to pay $185 million in fines to end a U.S. investigation centering on millions in bribes the German automobile company paid to guarantee overseas business. Two subsidiaries have also agreed to plead guilty to bribing foreign officials.

The Securities and Exchange Commission's (SEC) investigation started in 2004 when David Bazzetta, a former auditor for Daimler, claimed he was fired for asking a question about a suspicious South American Mercedes-Benz bank account. In response to these allegations Daimler held its own investigation in 2005 and found “improper payments” were made to several companies in different countries. Daimler then hired Louis Freeh, a former FBI director and independent contractor, to monitor these business transactions.

The Justice Department filed a complaint in federal court Tuesday detailing the results of its investigation. It said in a statement that secret funds were supervised at the highest level of management, and that the accounts couldn't have been opened without a manager's approval.

A hearing in the case is scheduled for April 1 in the U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C.

Read more about this on the Wall Street Journal blog.

Daimler AG has agreed to pay $185 million in fines to end a U.S. investigation centering on millions in bribes the German automobile company paid to guarantee overseas business. Two subsidiaries have also agreed to plead guilty to bribing foreign officials.

The Securities and Exchange Commission's (SEC) investigation started in 2004 when David Bazzetta, a former auditor for Daimler, claimed he was fired for asking a question about a suspicious South American Mercedes-Benz bank account. In response to these allegations Daimler held its own investigation in 2005 and found “improper payments” were made to several companies in different countries. Daimler then hired Louis Freeh, a former FBI director and independent contractor, to monitor these business transactions.

The Justice Department filed a complaint in federal court Tuesday detailing the results of its investigation. It said in a statement that secret funds were supervised at the highest level of management, and that the accounts couldn't have been opened without a manager's approval.

A hearing in the case is scheduled for April 1 in the U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C.

Read more about this on the Wall Street Journal blog.