Price-fixers agree UK jail terms

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Three British oil industry executives who pleaded guilty to price-fixing charges in America are to serve their sentences in UK jails.

Bryan Allison, David Brammar and Peter Whittle admitted arranging illegal deals worth £122m at the US district court in Houston, Texas.

The US Department of Justice said co-operation between British and US authorities had been "unprecedented".

Whittle agreed to serve 30 months in jail, Allison 24 and Brammar 20.

'Record-setting'

A spokesman for the justice department said these were the longest prison sentences that foreign nationals charged with anti-trust offences have agreed to serve in the history of the division.

In addition, Whittle and Allison were fined $100,000 (£48,900) and Brammar $75,000 (£36,700).

The lengthy prison sentences that these defendants have agreed to serve reflect our long-held belief that jail is the most effective deterrent Deputy Assistant Attorney General Scott Hammond

Allison was managing director of Grimsby-based Dunlop Oil and Marine Ltd, Brammar the firm's sales and marketing director, and Whittle the proprietor of PW Consulting (Oil & Marine).

The trio admitted one charge of conspiracy to suppress and eliminate competition by rigging bids, fixing prices and allocating market shares.

All charges related to the sale of marine hoses, which transfer oil from tankers.

The deal between London and Washington allowing all three to serve their terms in the UK could have a significant impact on the prosecution of British nationals in the US, the justice department spokesman added.

Thomas Barnett, the assistant attorney general in charge of the US Justice Department's anti-trust division, said: "This investigation has not only netted record-setting jail sentences but has involved unprecedented co-ordination with the United Kingdom."

Scott Hammond, the deputy assistant attorney general for criminal enforcement of the anti-trust division, said: "The lengthy prison sentences that these defendants have agreed to serve reflect our long-held belief that jail is the most effective deterrent for anti-trust defendants."