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- The State Dept. is looking for a $5,800 bottle of whiskey gifted to Mike Pompeo in 2019 by Japan's govt.
- American officials can accept gifts under $390 on behalf of the government.
- Pompeo's lawyer denied that his client knew anything about the bottle.
- See more stories on Insider's business page.
The state department is trying to locate a $5,800 bottle of Japanese whiskey gifted to then-Secretary of State Mike Pompeo by the Japanese government in 2019, according to a notice made public in the federal register on Wednesday.
The filing states that it is hasn't been determined whether Pompeo received the gift, and he was traveling to Saudi Arabia on June 24, 2019, when Japanese officials gifted the expensive whiskey. According to the New York Times, the register is used for senior American officials to document gifts they've received from foreign counterparts.
"The department is looking into the matter and has an ongoing inquiry," the document said. State Department policy allows American diplomats to keep gifts under $390 and they have the option them to purchase gifts over that price.
By law, American officials cannot accept gifts from a foreign government. The stipulation was made to prevent foreign governments or diplomats from exercising influence over officials.
The State Department valued the whiskey gifted to Pompeo at $5,800.
Pompeo's lawyer, William A. Burck, told Insider, "He has no idea what the disposition was of this bottle of whiskey."
Burck added that Pompeo did not remember receiving the bottle, and did not know there was an inquiry into where it went.
The Times reported that the US government was never paid for the bottle and that the State Department has asked its inspector general to investigate the incident.
