U.S. Department
of Justice
Information
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| IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF TEXAS
15 U.S.C. § 1 The United States of America, acting through its attorneys, charges: DESCRIPTION OF THE OFFENSE 1. Dr. Kuno Sommer is made a defendant on the charge stated below. 2. Beginning in part at least as early as January 1990 and continuing in part until at least February 1999, the exact dates being unknown to the United States, the defendant's corporate employer, F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd ("Roche"), and co-conspirators entered into and participated in a combination and conspiracy to suppress and eliminate competition by fixing the price and allocating the volume of certain vitamins manufactured by the corporate co-conspirators and sold by them in the United States and elsewhere, and to allocate customers for vitamin premixes sold in the United States. The defendant joined and participated in the charged conspiracy from at least as early as January 1991 until at least December 1997. The combination and conspiracy engaged in by the defendant and co-conspirators was in unreasonable restraint of interstate and foreign trade and commerce in violation of Section 1 of the Sherman Act (15 U.S.C. § 1). 3. The charged combination and conspiracy:
4. For the purpose of forming and carrying out the charged combination and conspiracy, the defendant and co-conspirators did those things that they combined and conspired to do including, among other things:
5. Vitamins are organic compounds required in the diet of humans and animals for normal growth and maintenance of life. Vitamins are essential sources of certain coenzymes necessary for metabolism, the biochemical processes that support life. All known vitamins have been synthesized chemically, and various such synthesized vitamins are manufactured and sold by the defendant and its corporate co-conspirators. 6. Vitamins are necessary for the normal and healthy growth and development of both humans and animals. Large quantities of vitamins A and E, vitamin B2, vitamin B5, vitamin C, and beta carotene are sold to customers in the human food, pharmaceutical and animal feed industries. Vitamin premixes are a blend of several vitamins and other products in either dry or spray-on applications. Formulated and sold as additives, these vitamin premix applications are used to enrich human food and animal feed products. DEFENDANT AND CO-CONSPIRATORS 7. During the period covered by this Information, Dr. Kuno Sommer was first the North American Regional Manager for vitamins and subsequently, the Director of Worldwide Marketing of Roche, a corporation organized and existing under the laws of Switzerland, with its principal place of business in Basel, Switzerland. Roche is engaged in the manufacture and sale of vitamins and vitamin premixes to the United States and elsewhere. 8. Various corporations and individuals not made defendants herein participated as co-conspirators in the offenses charged herein and performed acts and made statements in furtherance thereof. 9. Wherever in this Information reference is made to any act, deed, or transaction of a corporation, the allegation means that the corporation engaged in the act, deed, or transaction by or through its officers, directors, agents, employees, or representatives while they were actively engaged in the management, direction, control, or transaction of its business or affairs. IV TRADE AND COMMERCE 10. During the period covered by this Information, the defendant and co-conspirators sold and distributed a substantial quantity of vitamins and vitamin premixes subject to the charged conspiracy in a continuous and uninterrupted flow of interstate and foreign trade and commerce to customers located in states or countries other than the states or countries in which the vitamins and vitamin premixes were produced. 11. During the period covered by this Information, the activities of the defendant and co-conspirators thatare the subject of this Information were within the flow of, and substantially affected, interstate and foreign trade and commerce. V JURISDICTION AND VENUE 12. The combination and conspiracy charged in this Information was carried out, in part, within the Northern District of Texas within the five years preceding the filing of this Information. ALL IN VIOLATION OF TITLE 15, UNITED STATES CODE, SECTION 1. COUNT TWO The United States of America, acting through its attorneys, charges: VI DESCRIPTION OF THE OFFENSE 13. Dr. Kuno Sommer is hereby made a defendant on the charge stated below. 14. On or about March 12, 1997, the defendant appeared for an interview by law enforcement officials of the United States Department of Justice, Antitrust Division, who were investigating a matter within the jurisdiction of the United States Department of Justice, a department of the United States; 15. On or about March 12, 1997, the defendant did knowingly and willfully make and cause to be made false, fictitious and fraudulent statements and representations as to material facts to law enforcement officials in a matter within the jurisdiction of the United States Department of Justice, a department of the United States; 16. On or about March 12, 1997, the defendant stated and represented to law enforcement officials of the United States Department of Justice, Antitrust Division, that: there was no conspiracy among the world's leading vitamins manufacturers, including his own corporate employer, Roche; that the defendant had never participated in meetings, conversations, or agreements to fix, increase, and maintain prices, or allocate sales volumes of, or customers for, certain vitamins with any representatives of any other manufacturer of vitamins. The defendant stated and represented that he was not aware of any meetings or conversations among other representatives of Roche or any other vitamin manufacturer relating to any agreements or conspiracy to fix, increase or maintain prices, or allocate sales volumes and customers in the vitamin industry. 17. In truth and in fact, the defendant then and there knew that he and other employees of Roche had regularly communicated and met on at least a quarterly basis with competitors, and discussed and agreed to fix, increase and maintain prices, allocate volumes of, and customers for, certain vitamins manufactured by the defendant's employer, Roche, and its corporate coconspirators, which products were sold in the United States and elsewhere. ALL IN VIOLATION OF TITLE 18 UNITED STATES CODE, SECTION 1001. Dated:
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