In a rare victory for corporate accountability over profit, French technology titan Capgemini has announced the immediate sale of its US subsidiary, Capgemini Government Solutions (CGS). The decision comes as a direct response to a firestorm of outrage linking the firm to the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency, following the fatal shooting of two US citizens by agents in Minneapolis.

The boardroom in Paris finally blinked. For weeks, Capgemini attempted to distance itself from the actions of its American arm, citing "legal constraints" and "classified operations." But the moral and political pressure became insurmountable after it was revealed that CGS was under a $4.8 million contract to provide "skip tracing" services—essentially digital manhunting—to track down individuals for deportation.

The Minneapolis Catalyst

The catalyst for this divestiture was blood on the pavement. The deaths of Renee Nicole Good and Alex Pretti at the hands of ICE and Border Patrol agents sparked protests that rippled from Minnesota to the Seine. [...](asc_slot://start-slot-5)French lawmakers, sensitive to their country’s human rights image, demanded answers. Finance Minister Roland Lescure publicly called for transparency, effectively cornering the tech giant.

• The Contract: The controversial deal involved building data dragnets to locate "targets." While Capgemini claimed they had no operational control due to US security laws, the optics of a French firm powering the deportation machine of the Trump administration became a PR nightmare.
• The Exit Strategy: Capgemini's statement was terse but telling: "The Group’s objectives" no longer aligned with the subsidiary’s operations. By selling CGS, they are amputating a gangrenous limb to save the reputation of the parent body. CGS represented less than 2% of their US revenue—a small price to pay to stop the bleeding of their brand equity.

Ethics vs. Earnings

This move sets a precarious precedent for multinational defense and tech contractors. It signals that foreign parent companies can no longer hide behind "national security" firewalls when their subsidiaries engage in controversial practices abroad. The "skip tracing" technology that Capgemini is now shedding will undoubtedly find a new home, likely with a US defense contractor less burdened by European sensibilities.

For the families of Good and Pretti, the sale is a symbolic victory, but it does not bring back the dead. It does, however, send a warning shot across the bow of the global tech industry: your code has consequences, and sometimes, the market will punish you for them.