The former chairman of a Taiwan aftermarket auto light maker pled guilty for his role in an international conspiracy to fix the prices of auto lights, according to the Department of Justice. Shiu-Min Hsu conspired with others to suppress and eliminate competition by fixing the prices of aftermarket auto lights, according to a one-count felony charge filed in U.S. District Court in San Francisco.
DOJ said that Hsu, former chairman of Depo Auto Parts Industrial Company, a Taiwan manufacturer of aftermarket auto lights, participated in the conspiracy from as early as April 2000 until September 2008. According to the plea bargain, which is subject to court approval, Hsu will cooperate with the department’s ongoing investigation.
With this filing, five individuals and four corporations have been charged by the DOJ’s Antitrust Division.
According to the charge, Hsu and co-conspirators participated in a conspiracy in which the participants met and agreed to fix prices of aftermarket auto lights at predetermined levels. According to the court document, the participants in the conspiracy issued price announcements and price lists because of the agreements, and collected and exchanged information on prices and sales of aftermarket lights to monitor and enforce adherence to the agreed-upon prices. DOJ said that the conspirators met in Taiwan and the United States for their price fixing discussions.
Last March Polo Shu-Sheng Hsu, the former president and CEO of Maxzone Vehicle Lighting Corp., a U.S. aftermarket distributor, was sentenced to serve 180 days in prison, as well as pay a $25,000 criminal fine for his role in the conspiracy.
Chien Chung Chen, aka Andrew Chen, the former executive vice president of Sabry Lee (U.S.A.) Inc., another U.S. distributor of aftermarket auto lights, pleaded guilty for his participation in the conspiracy on June 7, 2011. He is currently scheduled to be sentenced on 16 October 2012.
In addition, two corporations have pleaded guilty. Last year Sabry Lee pleaded guilty and was sentenced to pay a $200,000 criminal fine, and Maxzone pleaded guilty and was sentenced to pay a $43 million criminal fine.
Furthermore, a federal grand jury has returned a superseding indictment charging Eagle Eyes Traffic Industrial Co. Ltd. and its U.S. subsidiary E-Lite Automotive Inc., as well as Eagle Eyes’s two highest-ranking officers, chairman Yu-Chu Lin, aka David Lin, and vice chairman Homy Hong-Ming Hsu. Trial is set for 18 June 2012, in U.S. District Court in San Francisco.
