(Bloomberg) -- Holcim Ltd.’s Lafarge unit pleaded guilty to US charges and agreed to pay $777.8 million in fines and forfeiture for providing material support to the Islamic State in Syria to keep a cement factory operating in the war-torn country.

The case marks the first time a multinational company has been charged by the US with aiding terrorists, and Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco called the French cement maker’s conduct “a new low” in corporate crime at a Tuesday press conference.

“In the summer of 2014, the world watched in horror as ISIS murdered innocent journalists and aid workers,” she said. “That same summer, Lafarge was in business with ISIS, securing profits and market share and capitalizing on the group’s brutality.”

Monaco said Lafarge’s payments allowed it to continue to operate a massive plant in northern Syria, generating nearly $70 million in revenue. She said the penalties imposed on Lafarge should send a signal to corporations whose actions potentially threaten US national security. Aside from terrorism, Monaco said the Justice Department was similarly concerned with sanctions evasions and cybercrime.

‘Deal With the Devil’

Holcim Chief Sustainability Officer Magali Anderson entered the plea Tuesday on Lafarge’s behalf in federal court in Brooklyn, New York. Breon Peace, US attorney in Brooklyn, said at the press conference the company made a “deal with the devil” in Syria that, among other things, allowed it to block shipments from Turkish competitors.

“To become business partners with ISIS is extraordinary, leveraging ISIS to harm competitors defies belief, but it really happened,” Peace said. He said the deal gave “terrorists who otherwise operated on a shoestring budget, millions of dollars” that was used “to recruit members to wage war against governments and conduct brutal terrorist attacks worldwide.”

Lafarge has been under investigation for years over accusations it aided the Islamic State and other terrorist groups by funneling money to them to keep its Syria plant running. The company is also facing criminal charges in France, and Monaco noted that several of the executives involved in the payments had been arrested by French authorities.

Anderson said in court that Lafarge “knowingly and willfully agreed to participated in a conspiracy to make and authorize payments” that benefited organizations designated as terror groups by the US government.

The cement maker has “accepted responsibility for the actions of the individual executives involved, whose behavior was in flagrant violation of Lafarge’s code of conduct,” according to a statement by the company. “We deeply regret that this conduct occurred and have worked with the US Department of Justice to resolve this matter.”

Anderson said in court that the individuals responsible for the payments were “separated from the company since at least 2017.”

‘Share the Cake’

Switzerland-based Holcim issued a statement saying it wasn’t involved in the conduct and that former Lafarge executives concealed the activity before and after it bought its French rival in 2015. Trading in Holcim was halted in Switzerland, but shares in Paris fell 3% on the news. 

The Lafarge plant, on Syria’s northern border with Turkey, was shut down after Islamic State seized it in September 2014 as employees fled. An internal probe found “significant errors of judgment” after money was paid to armed Syrian groups to safeguard the factory. The inquiry triggered the departure of the chief executive officer. 

Monaco said Tuesday that many other companies “made the right choice” and left northern Syria when the area fell under Islamic State control. But Lafarge “didn’t flinch” and instead worked “with ISIS to keep operations open, undercut competitors, and maximize revenue,” she said. The investigation uncovered emails in which Lafarge executives discussed how they could “share the cake” with Islamic State, Monaco said.

Though Holcim wasn’t involved in the payments, Monaco said the Swiss company failed to perform due diligence of Lafarge’s Syrian operations before its acquisition and didn’t investigate its actions until after they were publicly disclosed.

Crimes Against Humanity

Later in the war, the facility was converted into a strategic base for the US military until President Donald Trump withdrew American forces from Syria.

A French court in May reinstated charges that Lafarge aided and abetted crimes against humanity for its alleged actions to keep the plant operating. 

Lafarge was initially charged in France in 2018 but the accusations were overturned after the company lodged a challenge. France’s top court later confirmed a terrorism financing charge against the company and paved the way for a reinstatement of the aiding and abetting charge.

In its statement, Lafarge said it “continues to cooperate fully with the French authorities in their investigation of the conduct and will defend itself against any judicial actions that it regards as unjustified in the French proceedings.” Monaco said neither Lafarge nor Holcim cooperated with US investigators.

The plea was made before US District Court Judge William Kuntz in federal court in Brooklyn. 

(Updates with comments from press conference.)

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