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U.S And Nigeria Sign Agreement On Abacha’s Loot Return

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U.S And Nigeria Sign Agreement On Abacha’s Loot Return

The Government of Jersey, the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the Government of the United States of America have entered into an Asset Recovery Agreement to repatriate over US$308 million in confiscated funds to the people of Nigeria. On Monday, 3 February 2020, The Trio Governments entered into an Asset Recovery Agreement to repatriate over US$308 million of forfeited assets to Nigeria.

This was contained in a press statement published on the website of United States Embassy and Consulate in Nigeria on Tuesday. The funds were laundered through the US banking system and then held in bank accounts in Jersey in the name of Doraville Properties Corporation, a BVI company, and in the name of the son of the former Head of State of Nigeria, General Sani Abacha. In 2014, A United States Federal Court in Washington DC forfeited the money as property involved in the illicit laundering of the proceeds of corruption arising in Nigeria during the period from 1993 to 1998 when General Abacha was Head of State.

This case is a result of substantial co-operation between the Jersey authorities, the Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section of the United States Department of Justice and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Federal Republic of Nigeria, with crucial assistance from other governments around the world.

At the time the case was filed as part of the United States Department of Justice’s Kleptocracy Asset Recovery Initiative in 2013, it was the largest U.S. kleptocracy forfeiture action ever to begin.

In 2014 the Attorney General of Jersey applied for, and was granted, a Property Restraint Order over the Jersey bank account balance of Doraville.

This was challenged in the Royal Court of Jersey and Court of Appeal, and an application for permission to appeal to the Privy Council by Doraville was refused. France and the United Kingdom restrained additional funds at United States request.

General Abacha and his associates stole and laundered many hundreds of millions of dollars of public money during his military regime, doing great harm to the future of Nigerians. The monies were laundered by his family, including his sons Ibrahim and Mohammed, and a number of close associates who laundered money across several countries.

The laundering operation extended to the United States and European jurisdictions such as the UK, France, Germany, Switzerland, Lichtenstein and Luxembourg.

The agreement signed this week is a milestone in international cooperation in asset recovery and repatriation, and will be of great assistance to people of Nigeria.

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Teo-Inspiro International is a media production company that is changing the narrative by empowering young people with digital skills to showcase the beauty of Africa. We provide photography and video coverage for events, produce films and documentaries that tell the African story and organize training programs on camera handling.

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