British American Tobacco fined over $600M for North Korea sanctions violations.
British American Tobacco has agreed to pay over $629 million to settle allegations of illegal business with North Korea in violation of US sanctions. The company's Singapore subsidiary pleaded guilty to conspiring to commit bank fraud and violate sanctions. The penalty is the largest arising from North Korea sanctions violations in the Justice Department's history. Smuggled tobacco products are regarded as a major source of revenue for North Korea's nuclear and weapons of mass destruction programs.