A 41-year-old secretary at Coca-Cola's global headquarters was arrested for attempting to sell highly confidential trade secrets of a new product to Pepsi. Joya Williams, along with her accomplices Ibrahim Dimson and Edmund Duhaney, conspired to sell the stolen Coca-Cola information for a hefty price of USD 1.5 million (Rs. 12.6 crores). The plot, however, backfired when Pepsi, rather than capitalising on the opportunity, reported the illegal offer to Coca-Cola and the FBI.
Williams, who worked as an assistant to Coca-Cola's global brand director, was caught attempting to steal and sell a phial containing a secret new product. The FBI, in a covert operation, posed as Pepsi executives to catch the culprits. During a staged exchange, Dimson handed over confidential Coca-Cola documents and the phial in exchange for $30,000, hidden inside a yellow Girl Scout cookie box. The undercover operation culminated in the arrest of Williams and her accomplices before the completion of their illicit deal.
Public Prosecutor David Nahmias praised Pepsi's decision. “They did so because trade secrets are important to everybody in the business community,” she said, as per the Guardian. “They realise that if their trade secrets are violated, they all suffer, the market suffers and the community suffers.”
Williams and her accomplices face charges of unlawfully stealing and selling trade secrets. Williams was charged with unlawfully stealing and selling trade secrets. They are accused of writing a letter to Pepsi under the pseudonym “Dirk” in which they demanded an initial payment of USD 10,000 (Rs. 8,41,373) for Coke's internal documents and the phial.
According to the reports, the conspirators' note can be read as: “I have information that's all classified and extremely confidential, that only a handful of the top execs at my company have seen. I can even provide actual products and packaging of certain products that no eye has seen, outside of maybe 5 top exe(cutive)s.”
The incident has once again highlighted the fierce rivalry between Coca-Cola and Pepsi. Over the years, the two soft drink giants have engaged in aggressive marketing campaigns, celebrity endorsements, and even product taste challenges.
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