The US Justice Department said Thursday it had won legal control of nearly a half-billion dollars worth of corrupt gains hidden in bank accounts by former Nigerian dictator Sani Abacha.
The department said a court judgment on Wednesday gave it title to more than $480 million that Abacha, who ruled Nigeria from 1993 to 1998, and associates had embezzled and placed in accounts in Jersey, England, Ireland and France.
That took US authorities one step closer to eventually repatriating the money, only a portion of the billions allegedly stolen by Abacha, to Nigeria.
The US is still seeking control over another four Abacha-tied investment portfolios in Britain containing $148 million.
Based on the court judgement, the department will seek to have authorities in those four jurisdictions order banks to transfer the money to it, on the basis that the corrupt funds were originally moved through the US financial system.
“General Abacha and others systematically embezzled billions of dollars in public funds from the Central Bank of Nigeria on the false pretense that the funds were necessary for national security,” the justice department said.
“The conspirators withdrew the funds in cash and then moved the money overseas through US financial institutions.”
An army general deeply involved in Nigerian politics since the 1960s, Abacha ousted a transitional government in 1993 and assumed the role of head of state until he suddenly died in June 1998.
Assistant Attorney General Caldwell branded Abacha’s theft “brazen acts of kleptocracy” aided by his son Mohammed and his former associate and still-prominent politician Abubakar Atiku Bagudu.
Justice Department spokesman Peter Carr said it was not clear how long it would take to take possession of the funds and give them back to Nigeria.
“Our goal is to repatriate the recouped funds for the benefit of the Nigerian people,” he said.
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haba! America! Their America.This is an indirect way of telling Nigeria that should they even give her any Ebola drug or assistance ,they will likely take the cost from the money since one cannot be begging when one has such a large sum in the person they are begging's coffers.But America overall is economically and otherwise a world power,therefore, this is sad cos Ebola is becoming a terrible international catastrophe and America need to act with human face since this involves human lives. Anyway na person we expose him sugar invite ants
ReplyDelete...and the Nigerian federal government has given the late Gen Abacha a posthumous national award, dismissed corruption charges brought against his son Mohammed (preparing him as pdp governorship candidate for kano state) and the man Bagudu still a pdp chieftain.
ReplyDeleteMay God help us in this country.
THAT'S THE NATURE OF THE NIGERIA THAT NEVER BE. WHEN CHINUA ACHEBE OF BLESSED MEMORY WROTE AT HIS DEPARTING LOUNGE THAT "THERE WAS A COUNTRY", MOST "POLLUTICIANS" CASTIGATED HIM.
ReplyDeleteNOW, YOU SEE WHY pdP IS NIGERIAN POLITICAL HEADACHE. SHOULD ABACHA COME OUT TODAY FROM THE GREAT BEYOND, HE CAN AS WELL BE A pdP chieftaiN. LIKE FATHER, LIKE SON, EQUALS TO pdP.
pdP, KEEP ON PULLING THE DREAMY NIGERIA DOWN UNTIL THE ARAB SPRING IS REPLICATED IN THIS PART OF THE TROUBLED WORLD. MAY GOD HELP TO SAVE HIS OWN PEOPLE FROM EITHER bokO haraM, ebolA or pdP.
OPPOSITION, BETTER WORK THE TALK BY WINNING ELECTIONS, RATHER THAN DWELLING ON TALKING THE WORK AND LOOSING ELECTIONS, EVEN WITH INCUMBENCY ADVANTAGE.
ALUTA CONTINUA...