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Air Peace CEO indicted in bank fraud, money laundering

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Allegation is false – Onyema

The United States Department of Justice had charged the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Air Peace , Mr . Allen Onyema , with bank fraud and money laundering for moving more than $20m from Nigeria through United States bank accounts in a scheme involving false documents based on the purchase of airplanes .

The American government in a statement said the airline’ s Chief of Administration and Finance, Ejiroghene Eghagha , has also been charged with bank fraud and “aggravated identity theft ” in connection with the scheme.

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US Attorney Byung Pak , was quoted to have said “Onyema allegedly leveraged his status as a prominent business leader and airline executive while using falsified documents to commit fraud.

“We will diligently protect the integrity of our banking system from being corrupted by criminals , even when they disguise themselves in a cloak of international business , ” he added .

According to Pak , the indictment , and other information presented in court , beginning in 2010 , Onyema began travelling frequently to Atlanta , where he opened several personal and business bank accounts. Between 2010 and 2018 , over $44 . 9m was allegedly transferred into his Atlanta -based accounts from foreign sources.

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the statement reads in part, “Beginning in approximately May 2016 , Onyema, together with Eghagha , allegedly used a series of export letters of credit to cause banks to transfer more than $ 20 m into Atlanta – based bank accounts controlled by Onyema .

“The letters of credit were purportedly to fund the purchase of five separate Boeing 737 passenger planes by Air Peace . The letters were supported by documents such as purchase agreements , bills of sale , and appraisals proving that Air Peace was purchasing the aircraft from Springfield Aviation Company LLC, a business registered in Georgia.”

It stated that , however , the supporting documents were fake as Springfield Aviation Company LLC, which is owned by Onyema and managed by a person with no connection to the aviation business , never owned the aircraft , and the company that allegedly drafted the appraisals did not exist .

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“ Eghagha allegedly participated in this scheme as well, directing the Springfield Aviation manager to sign and send false documents to banks and even using the manager ’ s identity to further the fraud.
“ After Onyema received the money in the United States , he allegedly laundered over $ 16 m of the proceeds of the fraud by transferring it to other accounts, ” it added .

The Chairman and CEO of Air Peace has however denied the allegation, describing it as false, saying it has “no way in line with my character as a person and as a business man whose only aim has been to build Nigeria and improve wellbeing.”

He said he “has never laundered any money whatsoever as every aircraft bought was transacted through the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

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“As the press statement clearly stated, these are indictment that only contains charges. I am innocent of all charges and the US government will find NO dirt on me because I have never conducted business with any illegalities.

“Be rest assured that I also have my lawyers on this and these mere allegations will be refuted.

“I never laundered money in my life, neither have I committed bank fraud anywhere in the world. Every Kobo I transferred to the US for aircraft purchase went through the Central Bank of Nigeria LC regime and all were used for the same purpose. The American companies that received the funds are still in business. I never took a penny from any US bank or Nigerian bank. I am willing to defend my innocence in the US courts,” he added

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25 Nigerian Crude Shipments Struggle To Find Buyers In Europe

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Nigeria is toiling to find buyers for its crude oil as strikes in the French refining sector and seasonal maintenance at European plants cut into the OPEC producer’s sales.

There are reports that about 25 shipments of the country’s crude for April loading were still searching for buyers, according to four traders specialising in the West African market. Each cargo was reported to contain about a million barrels of crude.

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According to tanker-tracking data compiled by Bloomberg, France, one of Nigeria’s biggest buyers, took an average of 110,000 barrels daily of Nigeria’s oil over the past year.

However, demand has shrivelled this month, with France’s overall crude imports dropping by half in March as the nationwide dispute over pension reforms escalated.

READ ALSO: Uncertainties Might Persist Amid High Risks To Financial Stability – IMF

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Bloomberg also reports that European plants are also buying less crude because of seasonal maintenance adding to the impact of the strikes.

“The Nigerian backlog is a combination of higher freight costs, lower tanker availability — specifically into Europe — as well as lower overall demand for West Africa light sweet as crude from other regions is deluging markets,” said Viktor Katona, a lead crude analyst at Kpler.

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Uncertainties Might Persist Amid High Risks To Financial Stability – IMF

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Amid the continued tension necessitated by the Russia-Ukraine war and the post-COVID-19 pandemic effect, the International Monetary Fund warned on Sunday that risks to financial stability have increased following the recent sector in the financial industry.

Speaking at the China Development Forum in Beijing, IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said she expected 2023 to be another challenging year.

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Her position is based on the rate of global growth slowing to below 3.0 per cent due to the war in Ukraine, monetary tightening and scarring from the pandemic.

READ ALSO: IMF Warns CBN, Others Over Rising Inflation

She also stressed the need for vigilance despite the high risks.

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She said, “Uncertainties are exceptionally high, with the outlook for the global economy likely to remain weak over the medium term. It is clear that risks to financial stability have increased.”

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Stock Investors Record N13bn Loss In Seven Days Over Interest Rates Hike

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At the end of last week’s trading activities in the Nigeria Stock Market, the market capitalisation declined by N13 billion following the Central Bank’s Monetary Policy Rate hike to 18 per cent.

According to data gathered by DAILY POST, the All-Share Index closed 0.04 per cent lower at 54,892.53 compared to the 54,915.39 it commenced last week.

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A review of last week’s trade showed that similarly, all other indices finished lower except for NGX Consumer Goods and NXG Growth, which appreciated by 1.11 per cent and 2.90 per cent, respectively, while the NGX ASeM, NGX Oil and Gas indices and NGX Sovereign Bond index closed flat.

The NGX ASI went up slightly on Wednesday, a day after the new MPR rate was announced, but it continued to dip till the close of trading on Friday.

READ ALSO: Marketers Predict Six-month Fuel Scarcity, Prices Rise

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The Monetary Policy Committee of the Central Bank of Nigeria raised Monetary Policy Rates, MPR, to 18 per cent from 17.5 per cent last month.

Muda Yusuf, the director of the Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise, CPPE, earlier disclosed to DAILY POST that interest rate hike would affect investors in Nigeria.

However, stock analysts are optimistic that the market will bounce back since the elections are over.

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