How Abacha Looted $2b From Nigeria – U.S. Report

By The Nation

The United States has opened up on how the late Head of State, Gen. Sani Abacha , his son, Mohammed, a friend of the family, Abubakar Atiku Bagudu and others looted about $2.2 billion through security votes fraud.

Money was also stolen through the Ajaokuta Steel debt-buy back and extortion of Dumez Group, a company operating in Nigeria.

Mohammed Abacha and Bagudu might be imprisoned if they disobey the order freezing their assets.

The highlights of how the late Gen. Abacha and others looted the treasury were contained in a March 10, 2014 note to the Federal Government by the U.S. Department of Justice.

The document, which was sourced from the United States,  urged the Federal Government to “serve Mohammed Sani Abacha and Abubakar Atiku Bagudu with the record of proceedings under the United Kingdom Civil Jurisdictions and Judgments Act, which is needed to enforce the warrants of arrest in rem issued by the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia”.

According to the document, Abacha and others laundered the looted funds through the United States.

Sixteen accounts and investment chains were traced to the Abachas in France, the United Kingdom, British Virgin Islands and the U.S.

Although the Abachas allegedly asked a former National Security Adviser, Aliyu Ismaila Gwarzo, to request for funds from the government to address “unidentified emergencies” to stabilise the then military administration, the ex-NSA was not indicted for money laundering.

There was nothing in the report suggesting that Gwarzo benefited from the loot.

Also, the report exposed how a former Minister of Finance, Chief Anthony Ani, was ordered by Gen. Abacha to repurchase some debt instruments worth 973 million Deutche Macs (the defunct German currency).

The US Department of Justice said: “General Sani Abacha was the President of Nigeria from 1993 to 1998. During his time in office, General Abacha, Mohammed Sani Abacha, Abubakar Atiku Bagudu (Bagudu) and others embezzled and extorted hundreds of millions of dollars from the Government of Nigeria. Abacha and his associates then transported and laundered the proceeds of those crimes through the United States.

“The prosecutor believes Abacha and his associates conducted three fraudulent schemes during his time in office: (1) the “security votes” fraud, through which more than $2 billion was embezzled from the Central Bank of Nigeria; (2) the Ajaokuta Steel debt buy-back fraud, which defrauded the Nigerian government of more than $200million through overpayment of non-performing debt; and (3) extortion of Dumez Group, a company operating in Nigeria, which was used to invest in Nigerian Par Bonds that were managed and traded in the United States.

“Between January 1994 and June 1998, General Abacha, Aliyu Ismaila Gwarzo (Gwarzo) and others prepared letters requesting funds from the Government of Nigeria, based on the false pretence that they were needed to ensure national security and the stability of General Abacha’s regime.

“In order to execute this scheme, Gwarzo submitted letters to General Abacha in his capacity as National Security Advisor, requesting millions of U.S. dollars, British pounds sterling, and/or Nigerian naira, to address unidentified ‘emergencies’ that threatened Nigeria’s national interest. General Abacha approved these request and disbursed the requested funds.

“These funds, however, were not used to ensure national security or stability of the regime. Instead, these funds were diverted to shell companies and personal accounts created by Mohammed Sani Abacha or Bagudu.

“In 1979, the Nigerian Steel Development Authority, an entity owned by the Government of Nigeria, entered into an agreement with TPF, a Russian company, to construct a steel plant in Nigeria for five billion German Deutschmarks (DM).

“Under this agreement, the Nigerian steel authority gave TPF promissory notes guaranteeing payment to the company. The Nigerian government later suspended payment on this debt because of a dispute that arose with TPF. As a result, TPF sought to sell off these instruments to recover some of the debt owed to the company.”

“In October 1995, Bagudu orchestrated a series of transactions whereby the debt instruments were sold at inflated process to a Liberian company, Parnar Shipping Corporation (Parnar) for 350 million DM. In turn, Parnar sold these bills for 481 million DM to Mecosta Securities (Mecosta), which resold them to the Nigerian government for 973 million DM. General Abacha’s Finance Minister, Chief Anthony Ani, personally approved the Nigerian government’s repurchase of these bills of exchange at the order of General Abacha.

“The Nigerian government purchase of the debt through Mecosta cost the government approximately 500 million DM more than if they bought the debt back directly from Parnar. Abacha and his associates subsequently acquired this money as another form of illicit profit.

“A French civil engineering company, Dumez Group, and its Nigerian affiliate, Dumez Nigerian Plc, had been involved in various civil engineering projects in Nigeria since the 1960’s.

“After General Abacha became President of Nigeria in 1993, he stopped payment on contracts between Nigerian government and foreign-based companies, including Dumez Group. As a result, Dumez Group was left with over $400 million in unpaid bills from the Nigerian government.

“An Abacha associate approached the company after payment ceased and informed the company that he could arrange for the government to resume payment if Dumez Group agreed to “kick back” twenty-five percent of what it received. Dumez Group agreed to these terms, and received over $389 million.

“In return, the company “kicked back” over $97 million, or twenty-five per cent, of that amount to General Abacha and his associates through a Swiss bank account controlled by Mohammed Sani Abacha.”

The document listed 16 accounts and assets to be forfeited by Gen. Abacha and his associates.

The Department of Justice added: “On November 18, 2013, the prosecutor filed a forfeiture action in the U.S District Court for the District of Columbia seeking to forfeit the proceeds of money laundering and corruption offences related to the investigation of General Abacha and his associates.

“The property sought to be forfeited by U.S. authorities include the following assets (collectively, the Defendant Properties):

•All assets held in account number 80020796, in the name of Doraville Properties Corporation, located at Deutsche Bank International Limited in the Bailwick of Jersey, and all interest, benefits, or asset traceable thereto;

•All assets held in account number S-104460, in the name of Mohammed Sani, at HSBC Fund Administration (Jersey) Limited in the Bailwick of Jersey, and all interest, benefits, or assets traceable thereto;

•All assets held in account number 223405880IUSD, in the name of Rayville International, S.A, at Banque SBA in Paris, France, and all interest, benefits or assets traceable thereto;

•All assets held in account number 223406510PUSD, in the name of Standard Alliance Financial Services Limited located at Banque SBA in Paris, France, and all interest, benefits, or assets traceable thereto;

•All assets held in account numbers 10030688 and 100138409, in the name of Mecosta Securities, at Standard Bank in the United Kingdom, and all interest, benefits or assets traceable thereto;

•All assets held in HSBC Life (Europe) formerly held in account number 37060762 in the name of Mohammed Sani at Midland Life International Limited, and all interest, benefit or asset traceable thereto;

•All assets in account number 38175076, in the name of Mohammed Sani, at HSBC Bank Plc, and all interest, benefits, or asset traceable thereto;

•All assets held in the name of Blue Holding (1) Pte. Ltd., on behalf of or traceable to Ridley Group Limited and/or the Ridley Trust, at J.O Hambro Investment Management Limited in the United Kingdom, and all interest, benefits, or assets traceable thereto;

•All assets held in the name of Blue Holding (2) Pte. Ltd., on behalf of or traceable to Ridley Group Limited and/or the Ridley Trust, at J.O Hambro Investment Management Limited in the United Kingdom, and all interest, benefits, or assets traceable thereto;

•All assets held in the name of Blue Holding (1) Pte. Ltd., on behalf of or traceable to Ridley Group Limited and/or the Ridley Trust, at James Hambro and Partners LLP, in the United Kingdom, and all interest, benefits, or assets traceable thereto;

•All assets held in the name of Blue Holding (2) Pte. Ltd., on behalf of or traceable to Ridley Group Limited and/or the Ridley Trust, at James Hambro and Partners LLP, in the United Kingdom, and all interest, benefits, or assets traceable thereto;

•Doraville Properties Corporation, a corporate entity registered in the British Virgin Islands, together with all its assets and all property traceable thereto;

•Mecosta Securities, Inc., a corporate entity registered in the British Virgin Islands, together with all its assets and all property traceable thereto;

•Rayville International, S.A, a corporate entity registered in the British Virgin Islands, together with all its assets and all property traceable thereto;

•Ridley Group Limited, a corporate entity registered in the British Virgin Islands, together with all its assets and all property traceable thereto; and

•Standard Alliance Financial Services Limited, a corporate entity registered in the British Virgin Islands, together with all its assets and all property traceable thereto;

“Following the filing of the Verified Complaints, the United States District Court for the District of Columbia issued sixteen warrants of arrest in rem, ordering the restraint of each of the Defendant Properties.

“The prosecutor has sought the enforcement of the warrants of arrest in rem in France, Jersey, British Virgin Islands, and the United Kingdom.

“The prosecutor is now required to provide notice of the U.S. forfeiture proceedings to Mohammed Sani Abacha, Abubakar Atiku Bagudu, and Dumez Nigeria Plc. Additionally, in order to enforce the warrants of arrest in rem for property located in the United Kingdom, the prosecutor must provide record of the U.K proceeding to Mohammed Sani Abacha and Abubakar Atiku Bagudu.”