Hewas sentenced to two years imprisonment in Florida and given a criminal fine of$50,000 in the latest development of an international antitrust crack down onsuppliers of marine hose.
Leadingrubber companies conspired between 1999 and 2007to fix markets and sell marine hose at non-competitive prices.
Shipownersand oil companies were the victims of the conspiracy which covered the sale ofhundred of millions of dollars of hose used to load and discharge oil tankersand gas carriers as well as by the offshore oil industry.
DunlopOil & Marine, owned by German tire maker, Continental AG, Manuli RubberIndustries and Parker ITR of Italy, Trelleborg Industrie of Sweden andBridgestone Corp of Japan along with various executives co-operated in anillegal cartel.
TheEuropean Commission imposed a €131.5m ($182m) fine on the five companies in2009 for manipulating the marine hose market, worth some €32m a year in Europealone.
YokohamaRubber was also a member of the cartel but was not fined as it blew the whistleon the illegal activity to the European Commission. Manuli was granted a 30%reduction in fine for its co-operation with the investigation.
Pisciottia former executive of Parker ITR was arrested in Germany in June last year andextradited to the US earlier this month. His two year sentence will be reducedby the more than nine months he spent in German custody .
Eightother individuals have pleaded guilty and have been sentenced to serve prisonterms ranging from 12 months and one day to 30 months.
TheUS authorities are pursuing Uwe Bangert, a German formerly associated withDunlop Marine and Oil, classed asa fugitive at large.
