$10 MILLION MISSING FROM A SINGLE EMBASSY ACCOUNT..!!!

The quiet diplomacy and behind-the-scene efforts to quell the investigation by the U.S. authorities into the Nigerian Embassy bank accounts seems to have suffered some setback. From the two Embassy accounts in Bank of America and Wells Fargo, the Americans have extended their investigation to the third and last account used

by the Embassy, which is with the M & T Bank. The extension of the probe to the M & T Bank account is a sign of a troubling escalation because investigation shows that was the account where the Embassy of Nigeria placed over 25 million dollars realized from the sale of the Nigerian Government real estate properties. Our investigation also shows this is not the operating account used by the Embassy, but they contained significant amount of funds, which have been apparently drawn down so fast between 2007 and 2012.
The current problem started with the other two bank accounts regularly used as operating accounts by the Embassy of Nigeria. These are the accounts with Bank of America and Wells Fargo Bank.

These accounts attracted the attention of US authorities when it became apparent that over 3.6 million dollars were irregularly moved into and out of these accounts within a relatively short time. The U.S. Treasury Department through the State Department in a letter to the Embassy of Nigeria demanded an explanation for such unusual and irregular movements of funds. Despite reminders from State Department, Nigerian Embassy never provided any explanation. Instead, funds continue to move into and out of these accounts in manners that deepened the concerns of the US authorities, causing them to direct the banks to freeze those accounts.

According to the investigation, Ambassador Adefuye and his family had been withdrawing large sums of cash from these accounts, including the $50,000 cash drawn recently by the Ambassador. Many have wondered why the Ambassador would have need for such huge sum in cash.

An online report last week suggested Nigeria and the United States of America government might be heading for a diplomatic row over the decision of the latter to freeze some of the accounts of the country's embassy in Washington, DC.
Bank of America, M&T Bank and Wells Fargo was said to have received directive from the US government to close the accounts of the Nigerian embassy in Washington and its consulate in New York on suspicion of money laundering after traffic on the various accounts raised a red flag.

The decision is sequel to intelligence report generated by a panel comprising representatives of the US Department of Justice, the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) and the Department of Treasury, unknown to Nigerian embassy officials, to monitor wires and traffic in all the accounts operated by the embassy.

However, sources say what troubles the Nigerian Embassy, particularly Ambassador Adefuye, the most at the moment is the discovery last week that Emeka Ugwuonye might be assisting in the investigation of these accounts. Around 11:30pm on Friday, June 15, 2012, the lawyers representing the Nigerian Embassy filed papers in court seeking to block Emeka Ugwuonye from giving information against the Embassy of Nigeria in any such investigation, claiming that such information will be privileged. According to the paper filed in court, a copy of which Elombah.com has obtained from the court record through the pacer services, the Embassy lawyers stated:

“The Embassy represents that Defendant Ugwuonye has engaged in an extensive campaign to impugn the Embassy and the Federal Republic of Nigeria by providing media interviews and writing blogs on the Internet, and he has even gone so far as to post on the Internet at least one deposition transcript from a separate court action he brought against a reporter that addresses matters relating to the Embassy’s claims. Accordingly, the Embassy requests a protective order prohibiting all parties from publicly discussing this case prior to the issuance of a final judgment.”

By the above statement, the lawyers for the Embassy of Nigeria are seeking to conceal the proceedings in the case from the public. Curiously, the Embassy lawyers referred to the posting by Elombah.com’s the transcripts of Sowore’s deposition.

On his own part, Ugwuonye is outraged by any effort by the Embassy to conceal the proceedings from the public. He believes the case is now in the public interest. He believes that the Embassy, EFCC and their cronies have spent the past 3 years publishing all kinds of falsehood against him. And now that the ugly truth about the Nigerian Embassy is coming to light, they want protection from the court. “They want a seal of secrecy. But that is too late”, he said. They are the once who have skeletons in their cupboards and naturally, they want to hide from the public. But I don’t think the court will let them,” he continued. “Look at all the nonsense their friends have been putting out against me. I can’t believe that the Embassy and its lawyers which their friends in the media tried to smear me, would turn around and accuse me of being the one publishing the proceedings of this case. They got to be out of their minds”, he concluded.

As for cooperating in any investigation on the Embassy accounts, Ugwuonye said he would be happy to sing songs. He knows a lot about the M & T Bank account. He negotiated the bridge loan for the purchase of the Ambassador’s residence in Potomac and that was with M & T Bank. The loan was actually not a real loan because the Embassy had in its account with M & T Bank more funds than the loan amount. Yet it had to borrow because of stupidity from Abuja. Also, it was in the M & T Bank that the Embassy placed over 25 million dollars it realized from the sales of the properties. [b]By end of 2007, there was about 25 million dollars in that account, all of which passed through Ugwuonye’s law offices to the Embassy. But by February of 2011, the balance of the account was drawn down to 15 million dollars without any explanation. Indeed, Ugwuonye realized the rapid drawdown when Ambassador Adefuye informed the EFCC that only 15 million was realized from the sale of the properties. Ugwuonye tried to alert the EFCC to the shortfall of 10 million dollars, which was not accounted for by the Ambassador. But Mrs. Farida Waziri and the Ambassador suppressed that information. The written statement in which Ugwuonye explained to the EFCC the entire amount in the account was destroyed on the instruction of Mrs. Farida Waziri and that document was not among the Ugwuonye’s statements which were filed in court as proof of evidence in the case against him in Abuja. [/b]All information about how the 25 million dollars suddenly became 10 million dollars was suppressed by Adefuye and Waziri.

Apparently, there has been a massive cover-up right from Washington, through the EFCC on what actually happened. How much money was realized from the sale of the properties in the United States, where were the funds kept, how the funds were spent, etc. And now, the Embassy is seeking the help of the court to continue the cover-up.

According to Ugwuonye, “I will respect whatever order the court may deem fit to make on the matter. But I doubt that any court will stop me from cooperating with the American investigators. On the question of attorney-client confidentiality, all bets are off when the same client lies against you and complain that you stole money. Also, this is a government. Some of the things I knew are not covered by confidentiality rules. This not about some nuclear science deals. There is a crime or fraud exception to confidentiality. A client who continues to commit a crime after he retained a lawyer cannot expect the lawyer to cover-up his continued criminality. I know quite a lot. I know that Nigerian government officials stole more money between 1999 and the present than was stolen throughout the period of military rule. You must know that over 80% of what was recovered by Nigeria as the Abacha’s loot was in turn stolen by Nigerian government officials under Obasanjo. I will tell the Americans all that I know. Every secret account I know to belong to Nigerian officials is open to disclosure”. This position by Ugwuonye is what is giving the Ambassador and the Attorney General of Nigeria sleepless nights.


Elombah.com shall continue it investigation into the progress of this case and the investigations over the Nigerian Embassy accounts.

www.elombah.com



http://www.elombah.com/index.php/special-reports/11531-panic-grips-the-embassy-of-nigeria-as-the-american-authorities-investigate-embassy-bank-account-allegedly-used-for-money-laundering

Land of free for all.How come we haven't seen this in the main stream media ?

It surely is good to have Santa Claus as president. All the naughty boys and girls are getting daily Keresimesi presents.

When did attorney Emeka Ugwuonye become a prof? Junk journalism at its best.
@ Topic, na today? Money don dey miss for Naija embassies world over since eon.

And the looting continues. So sad.

Hope this doesn't get swept under the carpet like others.

Yeske!:
Hope this doesn't get swept under the carpet like others.

This is the one we should make sure definitely doesn't get swept under the carpet, no matter what!

https://www.nairaland.com/967195/n2.6trn-subsidy-heist-does-president#11147743

Unfortunately it seems it has started happening. Nigerian's and short attention span!

Nigeria is a land of predominatly mugus and a gangster paradise. A land where even academic professors visionless and cheap thieves. They steal from themselves because they lack common sense,instinct and intuition. Like talking corpses.

**just passing**

And the corruption saga continues... And later someone will call GEJ corrupt..

The Attornet General of the Federation must be the most inept Nigga existing on the Planet of the earth.. All these corrution around him and the person cant successfully prosecute anybody..

Any Lawyer willing to make his or her name in the business would be gunning for that office..

This is FRESH AIR for you.. No hiding place for corruption

Ileke-IdI:
It surely is good to have Santa Claus as president. All the naughty boys and girls are getting daily Keresimesi presents.

You beat me to it: President GEJ Santa Claus

It appears the man's job is not a responsible one. Or rather it's only responsibility is to appoint inept and corrupt people..

Spirit of Okija: And the corruption saga continues... And later someone will call GEJ corrupt..

The Attornet General of the Federation must be the most inept Nigga existing on the Planet of the earth.. All these corrution around him and the person cant successfully prosecute anybody..

Any Lawyer willing to make his or her name in the business would be gunning for that office..

This is FRESH AIR for you.. No hiding place for corruption

What is the point of having "no hiding place for corruption" if it is not going to be prosecuted?
I will keep on saying Nigerians are not serious. Like little kids, too short an attention span to follow events and demand actions. Jumping from one scandal to another and having no resolution to any.

Yeske!:
Hope this doesn't get swept under the carpet like others.

be sure it wont, this time the U.S of A is involved.
hell is empty, all the demons are in abuja

Sky Blue:

What is the point of having "no hiding place for corruption" if it is not going to be prosecuted?
I will keep on saying Nigerians are not serious. Like little kids, too short an attention span to follow events and demand actions. Jumping from one scandal to another and having no resolution to any.

Its not his job to prosecute corrupt politicians but that of the Attorney General..

And I agree with you on the short attention span of Nigerians..

Joey82:

be sure it wont, this time the U.S of A is involved.
hell is empty, all the demons are in abuja

ROFLMAO!!

MONEY,MONEY,MONEY, HOW MANY TIMES I CALL U SO,WHY U NO DEY BELLEFUL PERSON.

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Spirit of Okija:

Its not his job to prosecute corrupt politicians but that of the Attorney General..

And I agree with you on the short attention span of Nigerians..

Did not say it was Jonathan's job to actually prosecute corrupt officials. Correct me if I am wrong, but doesn't the president appoint the AGF? If a dispensation claims to be fighting corruption does that not include selecting a worthwile AGF? One thing I will agree on though is that more attention definitely needs too be given to our AGF Mohammed Bello Adoke. He needs to explain what he has been doing given all the cases we have potentialy pending (if they have even started) all the way back to Kabiru Sokoto. Unfortunately he is not in an elected position.

So to be frank what we should be saying is 'Jonathan, what is your AGF doing?' Afterall we did not elect Adoke, but we elected Jonathan.

Honestly speaking a Ribadu as AGF might have been interesting. Tired of all these AGFs that lack zeal and in some instances (Aoondoaka or whatever the fellow is called), work against our interest.

small thing

and to think some mumu nairalanders came here trying to justify how withdrawing $50,000 from the Nigerian embassy account in the UK was normal.

ACCOUNTABILITY!!!

this kind of money could have still gone missing without such withdrawals but the point i was trying to make was that no man should have the sole authority of being able to withdraw money from a nations account. I weep for this nation of ours.

10million dollars wear agbada for body and canvass for leg pick race commot for bank! i dey laff o!

chuckdee4: and to think some mumu nairalanders came here trying to justify how withdrawing $50,000 from the Nigerian embassy account in the UK was normal.

ACCOUNTABILITY!!!

this kind of money could have still gone missing without such withdrawals but the point i was trying to make was that no man should have the sole authority of being able to withdraw money from a nations account. I weep for this nation of ours.

That was how one person had 2 billion in his bedroom... Gotten straight out of the Pension account..

They steal from themselves because they lack common sense,instinct and intuition. Like talking corpses.[img]http://www.demama.info/g.gif[/img]

philip0906: **just passing**

me 2..i don tire 4 dis kind newz

And y is dis news Its just 25m na more money have been stolen b4 nd nothing happens. D best way to enjoy dis country without frustration is to watch every thing as 1 big comedy series nd stay away frm d north as u fight for ur daily bread.
If u want to cure 9ja of its cancer that has spread to all its organs, were ll u start from?

Corruption as a virus has eaten deep in Nigeria and i bet nobody can reduce it except God's divine judgement. All Nigeria politicians and otherwise got to their post through corruption and that is it will be an herculean task to reduce the level of corruption in Nigeria.

What are Nigerian Civil Servants(From Federal down to Local Government levels) good for?? LOOTING.!!!

Batam: Corruption as a virus has eaten deep in Nigeria and i bet nobody can reduce it except God's divine judgement. All Nigeria politicians and otherwise got to their post through corruption and that is it will be an herculean task to reduce the level of corruption in Nigeria.

Fighting corruption isn't as herculean a task as we make it and the more we keep saying this, the more we keep giving our leaders the mandate and authority to rob us, after all, 'fighting corruption is to herculean a task'. It is in the interest of nobody but thieves, for us to continue repeating that 'corruption is too herculean to fight' line.

To fight corruption people need to know that there is a new way of doing things in the dispensation. This is posturing that has to come from leadership that selects non compromising people to fill certain key roles of law enforcement. Heck a good AGF, IG and EFCC chairman working together can do it. Nigerians can steal but they are also cowards. Once you set a good example and close loop holes through effective legislation the problem will be drastically reduced at the federal level. It starts at the top. What is our AGF doing?

To be continue. They re all drama

Kleptocracy. Nothing short of public execution will stop people who are bent on looting Nigeria to death.

We've been hearing of hell, where evil people will end up. What we've not been told is the location of this hell. It might just be Nigeria. How can someone have mind to remove not $1 thousand dollars, not $10 thousand but [size=16pt]$10 million[/size]. Some people need to be taken to eagles square in Abuja and be shot one by one until we get rid of thieves from our society. God punish satan.