Corsa Coal Corporation, headquartered in Pennsylvania, mined, processed, and sold metallurgical coal to customers in the domestic and international steel industries. The company operated mines in Pennsylvania and Maryland and conducted business in foreign markets, including, at various times, Egypt and Turkey.
Charles Hunter Hobson, a U.S. citizen and resident of Tennessee, worked for Corsa Coal Corp between 2016 and March 2018 in various international sales positions, including as Vice President of Appalachian Business.
Frederick Cushmore Jr., a U.S. citizen and resident of Connecticut, worked for Corsa Coal Corp between late 2016 and October 2020 in various international sales positions, including as Vice President, Head of International Sales.
According to the documents in this case, between 2016 and 2020, Hobson conspired with others, including Cushmore, to pay bribes to officials at Al Nasr Company for Coke and Chemicals ("Al Nasr"), an Egyptian state-owned and state-controlled entity, in order to obtain and retain lucrative sales contracts for Corsa Coal Corp. The scheme involved making commission payments to Corsa Coal Corp's sales agent in Egypt, and it was understood and intended that a portion of the commissions that Corsa Coal Corp paid to the agent would be passed on as bribes to the Egyptian officials. Hobson is also alleged to have conspired to secretly receive a portion of the commissions paid to the sales intermediary as kickbacks. In all, Corsa Coal Corp paid the Egyptian officials approximately $4.8 million, and Al Nasr paid Corsa Coal Corp approximately $143 million in connection with the company's awarded contracts.
On March 29, 2022, the DOJ filed a seven count indictment in the Western District of Pennsylvania against Hobson alleging (1) a conspiracy to violate the antibribery provisions of the FCPA, (2-3) direct violations of the antibribery provisions of the FCPA, (4-6) money laundering, and (7) a conspircy to commit wire fraud. Hobson pled not guilty on April 19, 2022. A trial was scheduled to begin on April 21, 2025, but on February 20, 2025, Hobson moved that the court continue the beginning of his trial for at least 180 days in light of President Trump's February 10 executive order pausing FCPA enforcement. On March 4, 2025, the DOJ responded that this case was under prioritized review and that it expected to have an update on the status of the case by March 18. Thus, it moved to hold Hobson's motion in abeyance and resetting the first day of trial to May 5. On March 6, 2025, the court granted Hobson's motion, canceled all the previously set deadlines for trial, and set a status conference for May 6. On April 11, the DOJ notified the court that it had reviewed the case and intended to proceed with the prosecution. A trial is scheduled to begin on February 9, 2026.
This case is ongoing.
In a related proceeding, on November 3, 2021, the DOJ filed a single count information in the Western District of Pennsylvania against Cushmore alleging a conspiracy to violate the antibribery provisions of the FCPA. Cushmore pled guilty on November 17, 2021, and he is scheduled to be sentenced on June 17, 2025.
