WASHINGTON, April 13 (UPI) -- Sprint Corporation has agreed to pay a $15.5 million settlement to the federal government for allegedly overcharging for wiretap services.
Sprint was accused of overcharging the government by about 58 percent and earning $21 million in additional profits between 2007 and 2010 for conducting wiretaps. The government reimburses telecommunications companies like Sprint or AT&T for "reasonable expenses" whenever the government orders wiretaps.
The government claimed Sprint violated Federal Communications Commission guidelines set up in 2006 by adding costs not covered under federal law, including "the costs of financing modifications to equipment facilities and services installed to comply with" the Communications Assistance for the Law Enforcement Act wiretapping law established in 1994.
"Despite the FCC's clear and unambiguous ruling, Sprint knowingly included in its intercept charges the costs of financing modifications to equipment, facilities, and services installed to comply with CALEA," the government's original lawsuit said.
Sprint tapped phones for the F.B.I., the Drug Enforcement Administration and other agencies. The company denied wrongdoing after the settlement was announced.
The federal government reported 3,576 wiretaps were conducted in 2013, a five percent increase from the previous year. About 88 percent of wiretaps for 2013 were related to narcotics.
