The United States yesterday announced that it has identified and taken possession over $3 million in funds looted by the jailed former governor of Delta State, James Onanefe Ibori.
Mr. Ibori was last April in the United Kingdom convicted on money laundering and conspiracy to defraud charges, and sentenced to 13 years.
The announcement of the seizure of his funds in the United States was made by Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Director John Morton, following a May 16 application to enforce two orders from the UK courts.
The assets involved are a mansion in Houston, and two Merrill Lynch brokerage accounts.
“Instead of working to benefit the people of the Nigerian Delta, Governor Ibori pilfered state funds and accumulated immense wealth in the process,” said Assistant Attorney General Breuer.
“He conspired with [his lawyer] Mr. Bhadresh Gohil to funnel millions of dollars in corruption proceeds out of Nigeria and into bank accounts and assets maintained in the names of shell companies and nominees. Through the Criminal Division’s Kleptocracy Asset Recovery Initiative, our message is clear: the United States will not be used as a safe haven for the ill-gotten gains of corrupt foreign officials.”
“This serves as a warning to those corrupt foreign officials who abuse their power for personal financial gain and then attempt to place those funds in the U.S. financial system,” said ICE Director Morton. “ICE’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) special agents will continue to work with our law enforcement partners at the Department of Justice Criminal Division’s Asset Forfeiture and Money Laundering Section to investigate and prosecute those involved in such illicit activities and hold corrupt foreign officials accountable by denying them the satisfaction of their illegal earnings.”
:sahara reporters
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