WASHINGTON (Reuters] – On Thursday, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission found that Vale SA (NYSE 🙂 in Brazil had broken securities laws when it made false and misleading disclosures concerning safety of dams before a 2019 tragedy which killed 270.

According to the SEC, Vale started manipulating safety audits of dams and received fraudulent stability certificates. The SEC also stated that Vale misled local governments and communities with its disclosures about environmental, governance, and governance.