₦airaland Forum

Roman Abramovich: Labour MP urges government to seize Russian billionaire's assets

The government should seize the assets of Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich, a Labour MP has said, citing concerns about alleged links to corruption.

Chris Bryant told MPs he had a leaked Home Office document which suggested the Chelsea Football Club owner should not be able to base himself in the UK.

Mr Bryant said it was written in 2019 and "little" had been done since then.

A spokesperson for Mr Abramovich declined to comment.

Replying to Mr Bryant, senior minister Mark Spencer said the government had taken "very strong action against high-profile Russian individuals who are of concern".

Downing Street would not be drawn on the claims about Mr Abramovich made in the Commons. The PM's spokesman said: "I couldn't comment on individuals in that way or on leaked documents of that type."

Earlier this week the government announced it would impose sanctions on three billionaires with close links to President Vladimir Putin as part of the UK's response to Russia's actions in Ukraine.

Mr Abramovich is one of Russia's richest people and is believed to be close to President Putin.

Speaking in the House of Commons, Mr Bryant urged the government to take action against Mr Abramovich, including removing his ownership of Chelsea Football Club and seizing his assets.

Quoting from the leaked Home Office document, he said: "'As part of HMG's [Her Majesty's Government] Russia strategy aimed at targeting illicit finance and malign activity, Abramovich remains of interest to HMG due to his links to the Russian state and his public association with corrupt activity and practices. An example of this is Abramovich admitting in court proceedings that he paid for political influence. Therefore HMG is focused on ensuring individuals linked to illicit finance and malign activity are unable to base themselves in the UK and will use the relevant tools at its disposal, including immigration powers to prevent this'."

Mr Bryant noted that the document had been produced three years ago and said: "Surely Mr Abramovich should no longer be able to own a football club in this country?

"Surely we should be looking at seizing some of his assets including his £152m home?"

Roman Abramovich
IMAGE SOURCE,PA MEDIA
Image caption,
Mr Abramovich with then-Chelsea captain Frank Lampard in 2005
As well as owning Chelsea, Mr Abramovich is also the primary owner of the private investment company Millhouse LLC.

He built his fortune in oil following the collapse of the former Soviet Union in the 1990s.

In 2018, Mr Abramovich experienced delays when applying to extend his visa to stay in the UK and eventually withdrew his application.

In October 2021, the businessman's spokesperson confirmed he travelled to London as an Israeli citizen - therefore entering the United Kingdom without the need for a visa.

Tier 1 investor visas, offering foreign investors fast-track residency in the UK, are being scrapped with immediate effect, Home Secretary Priti Patel confirmed last week.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-60506563

https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/976/cpsprodpb/9785/production/_123398783_f2eaff23-03a0-43ce-93c5-7aefe412902d.jpg

It's on......like a thong!

[img]https://c./7ow-MNsqzfwAAAAC/putin-vladimir-putin.gif[/img]

Senior Sacked Officials

[img]https://c./7ow-MNsqzfwAAAAC/putin-vladimir-putin.gif[/img]

....we move!

[img]https://c./dVHoUkaKgccAAAAd/lakaka-lakaka-fail.gif[/img]

[img]https://c./UPKTGG-wJu4AAAAC/megumin-konosuba.gif[/img]

[img]https://c./gaGJCM8ZsOoAAAAM/bh187-the-grinch.gif[/img]

[img]https://media1./images/8449c89b2a5a67af4d98b99a8e403eee/tenor.gif?itemid=21379361[/img]

Lootician.............

[img]https://media1./images/8449c89b2a5a67af4d98b99a8e403eee/tenor.gif?itemid=21379361[/img]

Exactly what i would have done!

[img]https://c./Z4Y5awHUoyMAAAAC/kitten-genius.gif[/img]

[img]https://media1./images/8449c89b2a5a67af4d98b99a8e403eee/tenor.gif?itemid=21379361[/img]

Pre-historic Igbo engineering!

[img]https://media1./images/24914c4f557942c35fabca2bac052dde/tenor.gif?itemid=21379364[/img]

....see chambers!

[img]https://c./-EHbQefJJ_4AAAAd/shocked-faint.gif[/img]

maximum sentence of five years in prison for $800,000?

[img]https://media./images/fb9a10aa60d5b694b35a09dc008eaf41/tenor.gif[/img]

[img]https://media./images/e878eaf8680eda957bccb5828227b8b7/tenor.gif[/img]

[img]https://media./images/e878eaf8680eda957bccb5828227b8b7/tenor.gif[/img]

[img]https://media1./images/94e6bacbb2767a6cfe1f7c6313710eb6/tenor.gif?itemid=8011703[/img]

Watery fuel........

[img]https://media1./images/d9a9af78b4e962f5b725c862f15584e1/tenor.gif?itemid=19099968[/img]

....the engine needs a good run to clear. Maybe 40km at speed.

Referendum.......?

[img]https://media1./images/becc1f4915e1148b9d33977ce4fb9c02/tenor.gif?itemid=21274393[/img]

[img]https://c./6qagUp8KQpsAAAAC/the-simpsons-homer.gif[/img]

[img]https://media./images/04c3bd721a0fa40bcd1e90540e8dc815/tenor.gif[/img]

[img]https://media1./images/2e2bea6251c7c05a01c8a2b65a03285a/tenor.gif?itemid=17069038[/img]

They must have been monitoring from govt house.

Senator Chris Ngige, the Minister of Labour and Employment, says Nigeria would have been in turmoil without the leadership style of President Muhammadu Buhari.

“We thank God. I am part of this government. I know that if we don’t have the kind of leader that we have, who is strong like President Muhammadu Buhari, the experience of Nigeria would have been like that of Venezuela,” Mr Ngige said on Wednesday.

According to a press statement by Charles Akpan, spokesman for the labour ministry, Mr Ngige said this after his induction as a Distinguished Honorary Fellow of the Institute of Leadership, Entrepreneurship and Corporate Governance (INSLEC) in Abuja.

INSLEC is a leading global professional body of both present and aspiring leaders, entrepreneurs and people in corporate governance.

Mr Ngige said that the citizens of Nigeria would have spilled into the Cameroons, Niger and other places as refugees if Mr Buhari had not insisted on agriculture.

“We made agriculture the first signature programme of the administration and provided food security so that we can eat whatever we grow here.”

The minister noted that Nigeria had stopped the importation of rice, sorghum, millet, tomatoes and other things hitherto imported, all of which were dependent on the scarce foreign exchange.

According to him, the country’s GDP grew by 5.01 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2021, the highest in the last seven years, marking three consecutive quarters of growth, following the negative growths recorded in the second and third quarters of 2020.

“Services provided the lead, followed by agriculture, even though it had a dip and then, followed by Information and Communication Technology (ICT).

“So, we have to be grateful to the government and our leader, President Muhammadu Buhari, for standing firm that we will not import food anymore here,” he claimed.

Mr Ngige, however, dedicated the fellowship to ordinary Nigerians. He commended the institute and chairman of the governing board for the fellowship and pledged to be a good member.

Earlier, Professor Gabriel Emecheta, President/Chairman of the council said the decision to elect Ngige as a Distinguished Honorary Fellow of the INSLEC spoke volumes about his pristine and differentiated worth as a leader, mentor and bridge builder.

Professor Ayandiji Aina, the Chairman, Planning and Resource Committee extolled Ngige’s creativity, confidence, decisiveness, humility and trustworthiness, describing him as a conflict manager of great distinction.

The Chairman, Business and Development Committee of INSLEC, O’tega Emerhor, while expressing gratitude to Ngige for accepting to be a member, praised him for imbibing wholeheartedly the spirit of the institute.

“We have been following your antecedents and what you are doing in the ministry and what you did as Governor in Anambra State.

”We appreciate your joining the institute and admit that with your brand name, the institute will make tremendous progress,” he said. (NAN)

https://gazettengr.com/nigeria-enjoying-peace-because-of-buhari-say-ngige/

[img]https://c./qqkIE78zxmMAAAAC/manchester-united-man-utd.gif[/img]

Is the fuel cleaner?

[img]https://media1./images/8449c89b2a5a67af4d98b99a8e403eee/tenor.gif?itemid=21379361[/img]

.......and this is not called 'long queue' in the South!

Lets hope the 'loopholes' found 'post Anambra' are few......

[img]https://media1./images/8449c89b2a5a67af4d98b99a8e403eee/tenor.gif?itemid=21379361[/img]

[img]https://media1./images/4d38b799c539f44f4b07b064b2e1d542/tenor.gif?itemid=23104130[/img]

[img]https://media1./images/4d38b799c539f44f4b07b064b2e1d542/tenor.gif?itemid=23104130[/img]

A Nigerian national named Charles Onus has pled guilty in the District Court of the Southern District of New York to hacking into a payroll company's user accounts and stealing payroll deposits.

According to the indictment and the statements made in court, Onus was actively involved in a scheme that took over user accounts of company employees across the United States and stole payroll deposits by diverting the salary payments to debit cards under his control.

This malicious activity started in July 2017, and until the time of his arrest, Onus had compromised 5,500 user accounts to divert a total of $800,000 in payroll funds.

Exploiting a hole in account security
The threat actor used credential stuffing attacks to gain access to accounts at a human resources and payroll company responsible for making salary payments for other company's employees.

Credential stuffing is a type of cyberattack where threat actors use username and password combinations taken from previous data breaches and attempt to use those credentials to log in at other online sites.

The method is different from brute-forcing or guessing the passwords, as it doesn't involve cracking but instead relies on the victim reusing the same credentials on multiple platforms.

"After a Company user account was compromised, the bank account information designated by the user of the account was changed so that Onus would receive the user's payroll to a prepaid debit card that was under Onus' control," details the DOJ announcement.

The arrest of Charles Onus came on April 14, 2021, when the defendant flew from Abuja, Nigeria, to San Francisco, where he was arrested at the airport.

The defendant has now pled guilty to one count of computer fraud for accessing foreign computer networks without authorization. This carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison, and the actual punishment is to be decided by Judge Gardephe on May 12, 2022.

https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/nigerian-hacker-pleads-guilty-to-stealing-payroll-deposits/

[img]https://media1./images/4d38b799c539f44f4b07b064b2e1d542/tenor.gif?itemid=23104130[/img]

[img]https://c./Gx8ziiR8jooAAAAd/play-sports-premier-league.gif[/img]

[img]https://media1./images/4d38b799c539f44f4b07b064b2e1d542/tenor.gif?itemid=23104130[/img]