http://www.saharareporters.com/news-page/ibori-commits-crime-dubai%E2%80%94-desperate-bid-stall-extradition

SaharaReporters has just learnt that the delay in extraditing former Governor James Ibori to the UK has to do with a crime he reportedly committed in Dubai, which is part of the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Several sources in London and Nigeria, told SaharaReporters that Mr. Ibori, in a desperate attempt to forestall his physical transfer to the UK, deliberately committed another offence in Dubai. Our sources revealed that Mr. Ibori has now been "charged" with a yet undisclosed offense in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The offence would have to be disposed of first before the authorities in Dubai could transfer him to the UK.

“Yes, we know that Mr. Ibori is in some kind of legal trouble again,” said an official in Dubai. He added: “The authorities in the UAE may not reveal the specific nature of Mr. Ibori’s offence, but rest assured that we will first process him through the judicial system before handing him over.”

A few months ago, British prosecutors won a legal battle in UAE courts for Mr. Ibori’s extradition to face trial in the UK for billions of naira of Delta State funds that the former governor laundered with the aide of his associates using British financial institutions. Mr. Ibori’s wife, Theresa Nkoyo-Ibori, a former mistress, Udoamaka Okoronkwo (nee Onuigbo), his sister, Christine Ibori-Ebie as well as his lawyer, Bhadresh Gohil, are currently serving jail terms of between five and seven years for their role in the money laundering schemes.

SaharaReporters recently revealed that Ibori, who gave himself the flamboyant name of “Odidigboigbo of Africa,” had begun negotiations with the Goodluck Jonathan regime to stave off extradition to the UK, where he was certain to face a prolonged jail term for money laundering.

Following an extradition ruling by the Court of First Instance in October 2010, the United Arab Emirates Court of Cassation in Dubai had ruled in December 2010 that the former governor of Delta State be extradited to the UK to face trial for money laundering, forgery, credit card fraud and grand theft charges.

However, several sources disclosed to us that Mr. Ibori reached out to Goodluck Jonathan through Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan to strike a deal in which Mr. Jonathan would negotiate the embattled former governor’s return to face trial in Nigeria instead of in the UK. Mr. Uduaghan, who is Ibori’s maternal cousin and chosen successor, is also implicated in some of the former governor’s money laundering cases in the UK.


Aides of Mr. Jonathan vociferously denied our reports, but several reliable sources disclosed that Mr. Jonathan had backed out of the deal after our expose.

Facing imminent removal to London, Mr. Ibori, according to our sources, decided to delay his extradition in order to buy time for Mr. Jonathan to pursue arrangements for his return to Nigeria.

One source told us that former Vice President Atiku Abubakar helped introduce Mr. Ibori to some top members of the ruling family in the UAE. “Chief Ibori’s lawyers and his political contacts in Dubai suggested that the only option open to him was to do something that would subject him to a trial in Dubai,” said a Nigerian source who is close to some of Ibori’s closest associates.

Our source at the UK Home Office said they were dismayed that the former governor has continued to exploit several legal loopholes in the UAE to avoid transfer to the UK. “His maneuvers are ultimately foolish,” said the source, adding that even if Mr. Ibori were jailed in Dubai, he would still be subject to extradition to the UK once he served out his jail term. “It’s absurd for a man to deliberately put himself at risk of serving two jail terms, instead of one,” said the source. 

SaharaReporters could not confirm the nature of Ibori's latest offense that has delayed his transfer to the UK, but one of our sources in Dubai stated that, whatever it is, “it’s cooked up by Ibori and his advisors to prevent his transfer to the UK while he continues to negotiate his return to Nigeria.” The source added that Ibori knows he stands no chance of wriggling out of a trial in the UK once British authorities take custody of him.

According to a Wikileaks cable recently released by 234next, Mr. Ibori had confided to an unnamed American lobbyist that he had more than $3 billion. Mr. Ibori’s revelation came as part of his deal to put some of his loot in a trust fund to serve philanthropic ends. In exchange for this donation, Mr. Ibori wanted American officials to broker a deal whereby he would be spared prosecution in the US, the UK and Europe.

Mr. Ibori was arrested in Dubai last year by the Interpol after he escaped from Nigeria as officials of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) tried unsuccessfully to arrest and prosecute him for money laundering. A diplomatic source from a European Union nation told SaharaReporters that they had been told that EFCC chairperson, Farida Waziri, had tipped off Mr. Ibori and helped him to flee Nigeria. Mr. Ibori, one of the top associates of the late Nigerian ruler, Umaru Yar’Adua, championed Mrs. Waziri’s selection as chair of the anti-corruption agency.