US Advances Smartmatic Overseas Bribery Case Despite Trump Order (1)

The Justice Department said that it will continue to prosecute executives at the voting machine company Smartmatic Corp. over an alleged bribery and money laundering scheme associated with a bid to win business in the Philippines.

Prosecutors revealed their plans in a Wednesday court filing noting that the decision followed a review triggered by an executive order from President Donald Trump.

The Justice Department “conducted a detailed review of the instant case” and “intends to proceed to trial,” prosecutors said in the US District Court for the Southern District of Florida. The filing didn’t explain what the review entailed or how the department reached its decision.

The move comes a week after the Justice Department dropped a separate overseas bribery case in New Jersey against two former executives at Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp. on the eve of trial. The DOJ is also reviewing two other prosecutions involving alleged violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.

The law makes it illegal for companies with links to the US to offer payments or anything of value to foreign officials in order to win business overseas. But Trump in February issued an executive order pausing enforcement of the statute and directing the Justice Department to review ongoing investigations and court actions.

Prosecutors alleged in August 2024 that Roger Piñate, a Venezuelan citizen and Smartmatic founder, conspired with two other top officials at the company to pay a $1 million bribe in order to win business tied to elections conducted by the Philippines in 2016. Piñate has pleaded not guilty and a trial is slated to begin in October.

When the charges were first brought under the Biden administration, Smartmatic said “no voter fraud has been alleged and Smartmatic is not indicted.” The company, which is suing Fox News over debunked claims the network spread that it rigged the 2020 election against Trump, said at the time that it placed Piñate and another indicted employee, Elie Moreno, on leave and that they are “innocent until proven guilty.”

Prosecutors also filed charges against former Smartmatic executive Jorge Vasquez and Juan Andres Donato Bautista, the former chairman of Commission on Elections of the Republic of the Philippines.

“We’re mystified as to why they dismissed the New Jersey case but not our case. It seems they’re taking an inconsistent position,” Vasquez’s lawyer Frank Rubino said. He added lawyers for the defendants had contacted the DOJ requesting more information on the basis for the decision.

Counsel for Piñate didn’t immediately return a request for comment. Counsel for Moreno couldn’t be immediately reached.

Headquartered in the UK, Smartmatic provides election technology services around the world, according to its website. The company is currently pursuing a $2.7 billion defamation suit against Fox News, which in January got cleared to proceed to trial.

Smartmatic also last September settled a defamation suit against Newsmax Media Inc. over its broadcasts that spread similar claims regarding the voting technology company’s role in the 2020 election.

The case is USA v. Donato Bautista, S.D. Fla., 1:24-cr-20343-KMW, notice filed 4/9/25.