Dutch civil servants arrested in construction bribery case

Six municipality civil servants and a Limburg province civil servant have been arrested on suspicion of accepting bribes, possibly from construction company Janssen de Jong Infra, De Telegraaf reported on its website Tuesday.

A former company manager was also arrested in the probe.

Janssen de Jong Infra is the parent company of Windward Roads Infrastructure N.V.

According to the Dutch newspaper, the public prosecutor’s office suspects the civil servants gave out confidential information on invitations to tender to the construction company. The invitation to tenders dealt with infrastructure projects in the municipalities and province, such as reconstruction and hard surfacing of roads.

The homes of the Maastricht civil servants were searched and inspectors have tumbled through their workplaces. Loads of documents related to the projects were carted off from the Maastricht search by investigators.

Prosecutors believe the civil servants concerned were considerably rewarded for their illegal services. The suspects reportedly got box seats/VIP tickets for sport events and concerts, foreign travel and meals in exclusive restaurants, among other things, in exchange for confidential information.

The investigations into the misbehaviour and corruption of civil servants started in summer of 2007. The Dutch Competition Authority NMA has been conducting a simultaneous investigation at construction companies in Limburg.

De Telegraaf could not reach Janssen de Jong Infra representatives for a comment.

Source: The Daily Herald, 29 January 2009