The Department of Justice (“DOJ”) announced that the International Rescue Committee (“IRC”) has agreed to pay $6.9 million to settle allegations under the False Claims Act (“FCA”) related to funding from the U.S. Agency for International Development (“USAID”) intended for people affected by the conflict in Syria.  While IRC received USAID funding for humanitarian assistance programming, an investigation by USAID’s Office of Inspector General (“OIG”) revealed that IRC staff received kickbacks, steered bid procurement tenders, and allowed conflicts of interest between staff and suspect vendors.  According to DOJ, OIG’s investigation demonstrated that this conduct on the part of IRC staff led to the procurement of goods at unreasonably high prices, which were subsequently invoiced to USAID.

Read the DOJ press release here.