The claim described an earlier position that has since changed.
The UK Serious Fraud Office was investigating the Rio Tinto Group over suspected corruption in its Guinea business, as announced in July 2017.
- About
- Rio Tinto plc
- Claim made by
- Serious Fraud Office, regulator statement
- Published
- 24 July 2017
- Original
- Rio Tinto group
- Evidence score
- 86 How it was scored
- Last reviewed
- 25 October 2026
Why this label
The SFO case page says it opened an investigation in 2017 into suspected corruption in Guinea involving the Rio Tinto Group, its employees and associated partiesS7. The same page says that in August 2023, after its latest review, the SFO concluded a UK prosecution was not in the public interest and closed the caseS7. Bloomberg reported the closure on 24 August 2023 and said no charges against individuals had been madeS3. The UK investigation is no longer open. Closure is not a finding that no wrongdoing occurred. The SFO page said the Australian Federal Police maintained a live investigationS7. Its status in 2025 and 2026 was not confirmed within the search limit.
Current procedural position
SFO investigation opened in 2017 and closed in August 2023 without chargesS3S7. An Australian Federal Police investigation was live as of August 2023S7. Its current status was not confirmed as of October 2026.
Record supporting the assessment
The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) opened an investigation in 2017 into suspected corruption
that it is not in the public interest to proceed with a prosecution in the UK.
had closed its 2017 Rio Tinto investigation into allegations of corruption in Guinea
Conflicting or limiting record
The Australian Federal Police maintains a live investigation
Evidence score: 86 of 100
The score grades how well the record establishes this assessment. It is not a score of Rio Tinto plc. Score = source authority + directness + corroboration + procedural accuracy + currency + reproducibility.
| Component | Points | Max | Reason |
|---|---|---|---|
| Source authorityIs the source competent to establish the proposition? | 28 | 30 | The SFO's own case page is the competent record of its decision. |
| DirectnessDoes the source state the proposition or only discuss adjacent facts? | 19 | 20 | The page states the opening and the closure directly. |
| CorroborationDo independent records support the same material point? | 11 | 15 | Bloomberg's report agrees with the SFO page. |
| Procedural accuracyDoes the record settle the procedural state the claim describes? | 12 | 15 | Closure without charge is a settled UK position, but not a finding, and an Australian probe was open. |
| CurrencyHas the record been checked against later developments? | 7 | 10 | No UK reopening was found. The Australian probe's later status was not checked. |
| ReproducibilityCan a reader locate the passage and repeat the assessment? | 9 | 10 | The SFO page is public on its Welsh language site. The English page blocked automated access. |
| Total | 86 | 100 |
Timeline
Related cases
- SFO investigation into the Rio Tinto GroupSerious Fraud Office (United Kingdom). Criminal. Not published.Stage: Closed in August 2023
Revision history
- Assessment first published with label Outdated.
Have a record that changes this assessment? See corrections and responses.
Sources
- S7Tier A Rio Tinto groupSerious Fraud Office. Regulator press release. 24 August 2023.SFO case page, first published 24 July 2017 and updated 24 August 2023, read on the SFO's Welsh language site. Supports the opening, the closure on public interest grounds and a live Australian Federal Police investigation as of August 2023.
- S3Tier C UK Closes Long-Running Rio Tinto, ENRC Probes With No Charge (3)Bloomberg Law. Press report. 24 August 2023.Report by Katharine Gemmell on the SFO closure and its stated reason.Link working, checked 25 October 2026
Other claims about Rio Tinto plc
- Supported86The SEC found in March 2023 that a consultant working for Rio Tinto on its Simandou rights in Guinea offered an improper payment to a Guinean official and that the payments were not accurately recorded.Regulator statement, 6 March 20233 records citedBribery
- Supported66Rio Tinto said its 2022 settlement with ASIC over Mozambique coal disclosures involved no findings of fraud or of any systemic or widespread failure.Company statement, 7 March 20222 records citedDisclosure
- Supported73A federal parliamentary committee said in December 2020 that Rio Tinto let down the Puutu Kunti Kurrama and Pinikura peoples over the Juukan Gorge destruction and should return all artefacts.Official report, 9 December 20203 records citedSafety