Despite the presidential pardon that was granted the former governor of Bayelsa State, Chief Diepreye Alamieyeseigha by the National Council of States, it is not yet over for him as he risks getting arrested if he steps foot in some countries where he is still under investigation.
According to diplomatic sources, there is still the risk of him being arrested due to the on-going international investigation in his involvement in money laundering and corruption.
The investigation is a multilateral effort by the governments of Britain, United States, South Africa, Bahamas and Seychelles as well as the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime and the World Bank under the Stolen Assets Recovery Initiative.
The STAR case against Alamieyeseigha reads in part, ““Between the start of his period of office in May 1999, to late 2005, Alamieyeseigha accumulated (outside Nigeria) known properties, bank accounts, investments and cash exceeding £10m in value. His portfolio of foreign assets included accounts with five banks in the UK and further accounts with banks in Cyprus, Denmark and the United States; four London properties acquired for a total of £4.8m; a Cape Town harbour penthouse acquired for almost £1m, possible assets in the United States, and almost £1m in cash stored in one of his London properties.
“Some of the foreign assets were held in his name and that of his wife, but the bulk of them were held by companies and trusts incorporated in the Bahamas, the British Virgin Islands, South Africa, and Seychelles.”
The British High Commission refused to comment on the issue on Thursday, as they sent a short reply to our inquiry, saying: “We do not discuss investigations. So, we cannot comment.”
Alamieyeseigha was arrested and detained in London on charges of money laundering in September 2005 when the Metropolitan Police found about £1m in cash in his London home. Later they found a total of £1.8m in cash and bank accounts.
He jumped bail in London by allegedly dressing like a woman and returned to Nigeria.
Alamieyeseigha was granted a presidential pardon earlier this week alongside a former Chief of Staff, Supreme Headquarters, Gen. Shehu Musa Yar’Adua; ex-Chief of General Staff, Lt.-Gen. Oladipo Diya; ex-Minister of Works, the late Brig.-Gen. Abdulkarim Adisa; ex-Minister of Comminucations, Maj-Gen. Tajudeen Olanrewaju; Major Bello Magaji; Alhaji Mohammed Lima Biu; and an erstwhile Managing Director of Bank of the North, Shettima Bulama.
Meanwhile, the Federal Government has given the assurance on Thursday that it would press ahead with the recovery of the assets acquired through stolen funds by Alamieyeseigha and return them to Bayelsa State.
The Nigerian government had through the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission instituted an assets recovery suit at the Royal Courts of Justice, Strand, London against the former governor, his wife, Margaret; some companies – Santolina Investment Corporation, Solomon and Peters Limited, Falcon Flights Incorporated, Ebco Associates Limited, Fiduciary International Limited, HBOS Plc, Royal Albatross Properties 67 (PTY) Limited; and a Swiss bank, UBS AG.
The court had on February 27, 2007 refused the Nigerian government’s attempt to obtain a summary judgment to recover immovable assets and funds in bank accounts totalling over £10m, which were allegedly held in the names of Alamieyeseigha, his wife and some corporate entities.
Justice Lewison had on February 27, 2007 refused the application on the grounds that Alamieyeseigha was not present in court to defend himself. The judge also said the evidence presented by the Nigerian government was based on testimonies to EFCC by individuals, some of whom changed their accounts.
Nothing has, however, been heard about the suit since then.
When asked if the Federal Government would withdraw the suit at the London High Court, the Attorney-General, Mohammed Bello Adoke (SAN) said, “No. It will continue and all recoveries shall pass on to the Bayelsa State Government.”