British oil company Soco has repeatedly denied allegations that it bribed officials to access Virunga National Park in the Democratic Republic of Congo — but new documents unearthed by watchdog group Global Witness say otherwise.

“These documents show that despite Soco’s repeated denials the company has paid tens of thousands of dollars to an army officer accused of bribing and intimidating those trying to stop oil exploration in one of Africa’s natural treasures,” said Nathaniel Dyer, head of the the Congo team at Global Witness in a Wednesday statement. “These payments may only be the tip of the iceberg.”

For more than two years the company has vehemently denied claims that it was paying off security guards to beat and even kill locals who didn’t want the oil company on the  land, or were simply fishing in a lake on its property. Advocates are calling for American and European authorities to investigate the company’s action in the unstable region of eastern Congo.

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