More than $267 million traced to the family of late Nigerian despot General Sani Abacha has been seized from a British Virgin Islands bank and paid into government coffers in an American state of Jersey.
The money, which was a part of more than $300 million stash, the Jersey State government said on its website was “laundered through the US banking system by people, including President Abacha’s son, Mohammed,” during the military regime of General Sani Abacha.
“On Friday 31 May 2019 US$267,751,992.02 was paid into the Civil Asset Recovery Fund,” Jersey State said.
“This fund is managed by the Minister for Treasury and Resources in accordance with the Civil Asset Recovery (International Co-operation) (Jersey) Law 2007, from assets that were previously held by Doraville Properties Corporation.”
A ‘kleptocracy’ initiative launched by the United States Justice Department under Barack Obama initiative in 2014 collected a $500 million once held by the former Nigerian dictator and his cronies.
The return of the money in the Civil Asset Recovery Fund to Nigeria, the Jersey government said, will be the subject of an asset sharing agreement, to be negotiated between the Federal Republic of Nigeria, the United States of America and the Government of Jersey.