The FBI is not waiting on JPMorgan Chase’s internal investigation into allegations of bribing Chinese officials.
Agents in December questioned former bank executive Gaby Abdelnour as he walked through Kennedy Airport, according a report.
Abdelnour, who from 2006 until 2012 was in charge of the bank’s daily Asia Pacific operations, was asked about JPM’s hiring practices, the report said.
The bank, run by CEO Jamie Dimon, is the focus of an international bribery probe.
Neither the former bank executive nor the bank have been charged with any wrongdoing.
The probe is looking at whether JPM improperly hired the children of China’s political and corporate leaders to gain business.
Abdelnour hosted the influential annual JPMorgan Bejing Conference that included an exclusive weekend retreat featuring small roundtable discussions involving CEOs of leading Chinese companies.
Attendees included Liu Mingkang, chairman of the China Banking Regulatory Commission, and Lou Jiwei, chairman and CEO of China Investment Corp.
JPM reportedly around 2009 started a Sons and Daughters hiring program in which it allegedly paid kids of government officials, sometimes as consultants, in exchange for big government contracts.
News of the FBI interview of Abdelnour was first reported by Bloomberg.
Abdelnour, after leaving JPM, joined Bain Capital as a senior adviser focusing on international deals.
His contract with Bain Capital expired at the end of 2013, a source said.
A JPM spokesman did not return calls.