British contractor jailed for bribing officials

William Shaw and the translator were arrested on January 25 in the Afghan capital Kabul, accused of paying $25,000 to two intelligence service agents to get them to release two armoured vehicles that had been confiscated because they were not properly registered.

Their company, London-based G4S, never got the vehicles out of police custody because officers became suspicious when drivers appeared to take the cars away.

The sentences, imposed on Monday, and the convictions came from a special tribunal for corruption cases. Shaw was also fined $25,000.

The West has been pressuring President Hamid Karzai to crack down on rampant corruption.