UPDATE 1-Chevron executives barred from leaving Brazil over spill

Reuters by Guillermo Parra-Bernal and Jeb Blount

View Original Article HERE

Here's another reason gasoline prices have gotten so high. Regulation of the oil production business has become mostly political. In this case, a minor oil spill that might have come from natural causes could lead to criminal prosecutions in Brazil. Could it be that countries are extorting money from oil companies through huge fines?

* Chevron halts output after navy spots oil stains

* Regulator ANP allows Chevron to stop production

* Spill in November led to $11.1 billion civil suit (Recasts to add court decision, production halt)

SAO PAULO/RIO DE JANEIRO, March 17 (Reuters) - A Brazilian court on Saturday barred 17 executives from Chevron and Transocean from leaving Brazil, pending criminal charges related to a high-profile oil spill last November.

A federal judge in Rio de Janeiro state granted a request from prosecutors who are pressing for charges against both firms, a spokesman for prosecutor Eduardo Oliveira said in a phone interview. George Buck, who heads Chevron's Brazil unit, and the other 16 executives must turn in their passports to the police within 24 hours, the spokesman said.

Charges are expected to be filed on Tuesday or Wednesday, according to the prosecutors' press office.

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