Eurest Support Services (ESS), a subsidiary of the giant catering company, the Compass Group. The British company Compass Group is one of the largest food service businesses in the world. ...

ESS is embroiled in the multibillion-dollar United Nations procurement scandal. ESS used the broker company IHC Services as a broker to get United Nations procurement contracts with the use of corruption of the U.N. official Alexander Yakovlev (UN procurement). IHC Services Inc is a vendor intermediary company aiding suppliers win United Nations contracts. ... The United Nations (UN) is an international organization whose stated aims are to facilitate co-operation in international law, international security, economic development, and social equity. ... Alexander Yakovlev was a long serving tenured member of the United Nations procurement department (since 1985). ...

A multi-million dollar contract to provide food to U.N.peacekeepers was awarded to ESS, days after Andy Seiwert a senior executive at ESS received confidential bid information from IHC Services's CEO, Ezio Testa. At the time U.N. officials estimated the total value of ESS food contracts with the United Nations at $237 million, with renewals and add-ons that could reach $351 million. IHC Services Inc is a vendor intermediary company aiding suppliers win United Nations contracts. ...

Attached to the e-mail were commercially sensitive U.N. documents that no one outside of highly restricted circles within the U.N. was supposed to have access to; and that the contracts committee itself would not ponder for five more days.

• The first document was a draft of the official recommendation by the UN procurement department that a $62 million contract for U.N. peacekeepers in Liberia be awarded to Eurest Support Services.
• The second document was a detailed United Nations evaluation of the technical abilities of 12 different food supply firms to meet U.N. requirements for feeding separate UN peacekeeping missions.
• The third document was a detailed list of the price bids, that three of the five firms had submitted for the UN contract. The document showed that ESS had bested its nearest rival, a food services firm known as Es-Ko, by literally pennies per ration unit, and had also underbid its competitors in virtually every other service category.

Such information is considered top-secret by the United Nations, and is submitted in a sealed-bid process that U.N. officials have touted as foolproof. Nonetheless, all this information was clearly available to the business executive who sent the e-mail: Ezio Testa. The United Nations (UN) is an international organization whose stated aims are to facilitate co-operation in international law, international security, economic development, and social equity. ...

ESS's business development executive Andy Seiwert, who received Testa's e-mail had a vital interest in it. Siewert was the ESS/Compass executive described by sources close to the U.N. as having the most frequent day-to-day contact with the scandal-plagued UN procurement department. That contact included frequent meetings with Alexander Yakovlev (UN procurement). Alexander Yakovlev was a long serving tenured member of the United Nations procurement department (since 1985). ...

Alexander Yakovlev (UN procurement) pleaded guilty to charges of corruption, wire fraud and money-laundering after his personal ties were exposed to IHC Services. Vladimir Kuznetsov Head of the U.N. Committee for Administrative and Budgetary Issues was also arrested and indicted after taking nearly $1 million in bribes from the Compass Group. Alexander Yakovlev was a long serving tenured member of the United Nations procurement department (since 1985). ... IHC Services Inc is a vendor intermediary company aiding suppliers win United Nations contracts. ... Vladimir Kuznetsov was the head of the United Nations Committee for Administrative and Budgetary Issues. ... The British company Compass Group is one of the largest food service businesses in the world. ...

Competitors ES-KO and Supreme Food Services AG have initiated lawsuits claiming violation of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act, the Sherman Antitrust Act and New York State's Donnelly Act regulating free trade. Federal investigations are underway and the case has been referred to the Serious Fraud Office (UK). RICO or the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act is a United States law which provides for extended penalties for criminal acts performed as part of an ongoing criminal organization. ... The Sherman Antitrust Act, formally known as the Act of July 2, 1890, ch. ... The Serious Fraud Office is an arm of the Government of the United Kingdom, accountable to the Attorney-General. ...

External links

• Compass Group PLC - Official site

Sources

• Compass Group’s bid rigging scheme
• Lawsuit from competitor ES-KO
• Lawsuit from competitor Supreme Foodservices AG
• The stolen secret documents
• Cooking Money site