US prosecutors recommend criminal charges against Boeing over 737 MAX crashes that killed 346 people

According to reports, US prosecutors are recommending that senior Justice Department officials file criminal charges against Boeing.

Prosecutors are proposing charges after finding the plane maker violated a settlement related to two fatal crashes, two people familiar with the matter told Reuters.

In May, officials determined the company had violated a 2021 agreement that had shielded Boeing from a criminal charge of conspiracy to commit fraud stemming from two fatal crashes in 2018 and 2019 involving the 737 MAX plane.

Under the 2021 deal, the Justice Department agreed not to prosecute Boeing over allegations that it defrauded the Federal Aviation Administration as long as the company scrutinized its compliance practices and filed regular reports. Boeing also agreed to pay $2.5 billion to settle the investigation.

The sources did not specify what criminal charges Justice Department officials are considering, but one of the people said they could go beyond the original 2021 fraud and conspiracy indictment.

Alternatively, instead of prosecuting Boeing, the DOJ could extend the 2021 settlement for another year or propose new, stricter terms, the sources said.

In the two crashes – in Indonesia in 2018 and in Ethiopia in 2019 – MCAS automatically pointed the plane’s nose down based on faulty sensor readings, and the pilots were unable to regain control.

On October 29, 2018, the Boeing 737 MAX carrying Lion Air Flight 610 crashed into the Java Sea 13 minutes after takeoff, killing all 189 passengers and crew.

Five months later, on March 10, 2019, the Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft operating Ethiopian Flight 302 crashed six minutes after takeoff near the town of Bishoftu, Ethiopia, killing all 157 people on board.

Investigations into the 2018 and 2019 crashes pointed to a flight control system that Boeing added to the Max without notifying pilots or airlines.

Boeing downplayed the system’s significance and only revised it after the second crash.

The Justice Department investigated Boeing and settled the case in January 2021.

On October 29, 2018, the Boeing 737 MAX carrying Lion Air Flight 610 crashed into the Java Sea 13 minutes after takeoff, killing all 189 passengers and crew.

On March 10, 2019, the Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft operating Ethiopian Flight 302 crashed six minutes after takeoff near the city of Bishoftu, Ethiopia, killing all 157 people on board.

After secret negotiations, the government agreed not to prosecute Boeing on charges of defrauding the United States by misleading regulators who approved the plane.

In return, the company paid $2.5 billion: a $243.6 million fine, a $500 million victim compensation fund, and nearly $1.8 billion to airlines whose Max jets were grounded .

Boeing has faced civil lawsuits, congressional investigations and massive damage to its operations since the crashes in Indonesia and Ethiopia.

Glenn Leon, head of the Justice Department’s fraud division, said in a letter filed in Texas federal court that Boeing has failed to make changes to prevent it from violating federal anti-fraud laws — a condition of the settlement of 2021.

The department alleges that Boeing failed “to design, implement and enforce a compliance and ethics program to prevent and detect violations of U.S. fraud laws,” according to NBC.

Boeing could now be prosecuted “for any federal criminal violation of which the United States is aware,” including the fraud charge the company hoped to avoid with the $2.5 billion settlement, the Justice Department said.

Relatives of the victims of the two fatal 737 MAX crashes have long criticized the 2021 agreement

Boeing said: “We can confirm that we have today received a notice from the Department of Justice stating that the Department has determined that we have not complied with our obligations under our 2021 Deferred Prosecution Agreement and requesting response from the company is asked.

“We believe we have complied with the terms of that agreement and look forward to the opportunity to respond to this matter with the Department.

“As we do this, we will work with the Department with the utmost transparency, as we have throughout the life of the agreement, including in response to their questions following the Alaska Airlines 1282 accident.”

Relatives of the victims of the two fatal 737 MAX crashes have long criticized the 2021 agreement, arguing that Justice Department officials should have prosecuted the company and its executives.

The Justice Department will decide by July 7 whether to pursue charges, amid increasing scrutiny over the safety of the company’s planes.