Fourth Samsung exec pleads guilty to price fixing

A Samsung executive at the centre of a memory chip price fixing scandal has pleaded guilty and agreed to serve eight months in jail. Thomas Quinn agreed the penalty as part of a plea bargain with prosecutors.

Samsung Electronics is accused by the US Government of driving up the price of memory chips used in PCs and servers, called DRAM. He was accused of violating the Sherman Act.

The US Department of Justice has said that Quinn has agreed to the jail term and fine but that this must now be approved by a federal court in San Francisco.

“Prison time for price-fixers remains the most potent deterrent to illegal cartel activity,” said Thomas Barnett, assistant Attorney General in charge of the DoJ's antitrust division. “Today’s action sends a clear message – those who engage in price-fixing schemes will be held accountable for their illegal conduct.”

Quinn is the fourth Samsung executive to plead guilty in the case. He is the 13th person to be found guilty in the probe, which has gathered $731 million in fines. Samsung pleaded guilty and paid a $300m criminal fine in 2005.