Smartmatic executives charged by Justice Department in alleged Philippines bribery scheme

CNN —

Three current and former executives from Smartmatic, the voting technology company suing right-wing media outlets over their 2020 election coverage, have been charged in the US in connection with an alleged bribery scheme in the Philippines, according to the Justice Department.

Among the Smartmatic executives facing charges is the company’s president, Roger Piñate, according to a Justice Department press release. The indictment itself doesn’t appear to be publicly available as of Friday morning.

Prosecutors said in the press release that the indictment stems from bribes allegedly paid by Smartmatic to Andres Bautista, the former top election official in the Philippines, “to obtain and retain business related to providing voting machines and election services for the 2016 Philippine elections.”

Bautista was already facing related charges in the US and is named in the new indictment, according to the press release.

Smartmatic released a statement acknowledging the indictments, saying that the two executives who are still at the company have immediately been “placed on leaves of absence,” though they “remain innocent until proven guilty.”

The company added, “No voter fraud has been alleged and Smartmatic is not indicted. Voters worldwide must be assured that the elections they participate in are conducted with the utmost integrity and transparency.”

Even though the charges aren’t about the 2020 election, the new indictment is already making waves in the ongoing lawsuits that Smartmatic brought against conservative outlets that promoted the lie that its software rigged the 2020 US election.

Fox News and Newsmax are facing defamation lawsuits from Smartmatic. Fox declined to comment. In a statement Friday,