Attorney: British lawyer pleads guilty to bribery

A British lawyer charged with helping a former Halliburton Co. subsidiary bribe Nigerian officials has pleaded guilty in the case.

Jeffrey Tesler's plea Friday before U.S. District Judge Keith Ellison was to two counts related to the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. He faces up to five years in prison on each count.

The 62-year-old was arrested in London in February 2009 on charges he helped steer bribe money from Houston-based Kellogg, Brown & Root LLC to Nigerian officials to win more than $6 billion in construction contracts. A grand jury indicted him on 11 counts.

Attorneys for the dual British and Israeli citizen had unsuccessfully argued he shouldn't be extradited because the crimes had no substantial link to the U.S. and that the delay could prevent a fair trial.