Boeing Company has agreed to plead guilty to a criminal fraud conspiracy charge relating to two fatal 737 MAX crashes in 2018 and 2019. The company has agreed to a $243.6 million fine.
In an unrelated case that was in civil court, Judge Arthur Engoron in February fined former President Donald Trump $464.8 million for what the judge says was overvaluing his New York properties in order to get more favorable loan terms. The fine was $354.8 million plus $100 million in interest.
The fines in the Boeing criminal case, concerning crashes in which 346 people died, and the Trump civil case, where there were no actual injuries, is in the same ballpark since Boeing has already paid a $243 million fine.
In addition to the main civil fine and interest, Judge Engoron also fined Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump $4 million and banned all three Trump men from being able to run New York companies in the future.
Trump has denied all wrongdoing and has appealed the ruling, as well as the extraordinary bond that the judge demanded be paid in cash.
In the Boeing case, the federal government will have the aircraft maker on a probation list for three years.
Families of the victims are opposing the Boeing plea deal, and will ask the judge to reject it because it makes concessions to Boeing “that other criminal defendants would never receive and fails to hold Boeing accountable for the deaths of 346 persons.”
