How Jonathan blocked Alamieyeseigha’s extradition to the UK

• UK Requests Diepreye Alamieyeseigha’s extradition
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• Why Jonathan is ignoring the request  
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• Mohammed Abacha in new money laundering scandal.

Nigeria Intel investigation has learned that the British government has requested the extradition of convicted former Bayelsa state governor, Chief Diepreye Alamieyeseigha to stand trial in Britain, a move that is being blocked by President Goodluck Jonathan.

According to sources close to the case, the extradition request was made earlier this year through the office of the Attorney – General and Minister of Justice, Mr. Mohammed Adoke, who, incidentally has been trailed by numerous corruption allegations himself.

Nigeria Intel investigations also found that Mr. Adoke, on the instructions of President Jonathan is trying to keep keep the matter under wraps and has reportedly replied to the British authorities that Alamieyeseigha had no case to answer, having been granted a presidential pardon in March this year.

Detained in Britain

It will be recalled that Diepreye Alamieyeseigha had travelled to Europe for a ‘tummy tuck’ cosmetic surgery, but was detained in London on charges of money laundering in September 2005. At the time of his arrest, Metropolitan police found about £1m in cash in his London home. Following more investigations, they found a total of £1.8m ($3.2m) in cash and bank accounts.

In addition to cash, Alamieyeseigha was found to own several houses and other real estate in London worth tens of millions of pounds, but jumped bail in December 2005 allegedly disguising himself as a woman, a claim Alamieyeseigha denies.

Conviction and Jail

Shortly after his return to Nigeria, Alamieyeseigha was impeached by the Bayelsa state House of Assembly, thus losing his immunity. He was promptly arrested and flown to Abuja in handcuffs, where he was charged by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). On July 26, 2007, Alamieyeseigha pleaded guilty before a Nigerian court to six charges and was sentenced to two years in prison on each charge; however, because the sentences were set to run concurrently and the time was counted from the point of his arrest nearly two years before the sentences, his actual sentence was relatively short.

Many of his assets (totaling about N126 billion) were ordered to be forfeited to the Bayelsa state government. On July 27, just hours after being taken to prison, he was released due to time already served.

Case in the US

In June last year, the United States Department of Justice announced that it had executed an asset forfeiture order on $401,931 in a Massachusetts brokerage fund, traceable to Alamieyeseigha. US prosecutors filed court papers in April 2011 targeting the Massachusetts brokerage fund and a $600,000 Maryland home, which they alleged were the proceeds of corruption.

A motion for default judgement and civil forfeiture was granted by a Massachusetts federal district judge in early June 2012. The forfeiture order was the first to be made under the Kleptocracy Asset Recovery Initiative (KARI).

Controversial Pardon

On 12 March 2013, Alamieyeseigha, who has retained a measure of popularity in the Niger Delta, particularly his home state of Bayelsa, was granted a presidential pardon by President Goodluck Jonathan, a move that drew sharp criticism from the public. Analysts believe that the move is not unconnected to Jonathan’s reelection bid next year, as well as Alamieyeseigha’s desire to run for senate.

Mohammed Abacha in fresh money laundering trouble

In another development, son of former head of state Mohammed Abacha is facing fresh money laundering charges in the United Kingdom. According to Nigeria Intel sources, Mr. Abacha, who was detained for a number of years by the Obasanjo administration, tried to activate one of several accounts in the UK by issuing traveler cheques of two thousand pounds each to cronies with instructions to cash them.

Nigeria Intel findings show that the plan went awry because the Central Bank of Nigeria had earlier declared the traveler cheques missing, prompting the arrest of the people who tried to cash the cheques.

Investigations also found that Mohammed Abacha then engaged the services of a London-based lawyer who was flown to Nigeria to discuss his defence on money laundering charges. The lawyer almost quit the case when, having billed Abacha 20, 000 pounds for her services, the latter simply handed her the cash. She was reportedly as saying, “We are trying to defend you against money laundering charges, and you are paying me 20,000 pounds cash? I cannot casually fly to the UK with 20,000 pounds in my purse”!

It will be recalled that about two years ago, a Swiss court seized about $300 million from Abba Abacha, another son of the former dictator. The entire amount was forfeited to the Swiss government.

In all, Abacha, who was head of state from 1993 – 1998, was alleged to have stolen an estimated $4.3 billion dollars from the public treasury. Despite numerous legal cases across the world, very little of that amount was ever returned to Nigeria, and even that was promptly re-stolen.

Faltering Anti-Corruption War

Since President Goodluck Jonathan became president, there have been fears that the anti-corruption war in Nigeria is faltering. In just one sector alone – oil, the sum of N2.6 trillion or over $15 billion was stolen. Not one person has been convicted – and many believe that the court processes are merely for public entertainment.  The perception is no doubt helped by attitudes such as the president’s comment during a media chat that corruption levels in Nigeria were tolerable.

Of recent, oil theft has grown so significantly that it is threatening state revenues. As the moment, there is a discrepancy of N3.2 trillion between what the federal says it owes the states and what the states say they are entitled to, based on Constitutional provisions.

University lecturers have been on strike for nearly four months; medical workers have gone on strike twice in the last three months; Polytechnic lecturers and secondary workers and even secondary school workers have threatened to join the strike amidst shortfalls in revenue and growing debt, inflation and unemployment, yet on Monday, October 07, 2013, the minister of finance Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, who speaks the minds of the president retorted that the Nigerian economy was strong and growing.