James Ibori
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James Onanefe Ibori (born 4 August 1959) is a
Nigerian Nigerians or the Nigerian people are citizens of Nigeria or people with ancestry from Nigeria. The name Nigeria was derived from the Niger River running through the country. This name was allegedly coined in the late 19th century by British jo ...
politician who was
Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...
of
Delta State Delta is a States of Nigeria, state in the South South (Nigeria), South-South geopolitical zone of Nigeria. Named after the Niger Delta—a large part of which is in the state—the state was formed from the former Bendel State, on 27 August 1 ...
in
Nigeria Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...
from 29 May 1999 to 29 May 2007. An ethnic Urhobo by descent, Ibori is a member of the people’s Democratic Party(PDP). He is a leader in the
Niger Delta The Niger Delta is the delta of the Niger River sitting directly on the Gulf of Guinea on the Atlantic Ocean in Nigeria. It is located within nine coastal southern Nigerian states, which include: all six states from the South South geopolitic ...
region and a national figure in Nigeria. In 2012, Ibori was sentenced to 13 years in prison for money laundering.Ibori gets 13 years


Early life

Born to the family of late Chief Ukavbe Ibori and Mrs. Comfort Oji Ibori of Otefe in Oghara clan, Ethiope West Local Government Area of
Delta State Delta is a States of Nigeria, state in the South South (Nigeria), South-South geopolitical zone of Nigeria. Named after the Niger Delta—a large part of which is in the state—the state was formed from the former Bendel State, on 27 August 1 ...
, he attended Baptist High School, Oghareki, now Oghareki Grammar School, before proceeding to the University of Benin where he obtained a
Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, B.S., B.Sc., SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree that is awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Scienc ...
degree in
Economics Economics () is a behavioral science that studies the Production (economics), production, distribution (economics), distribution, and Consumption (economics), consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and interac ...
and
Statistics Statistics (from German language, German: ', "description of a State (polity), state, a country") is the discipline that concerns the collection, organization, analysis, interpretation, and presentation of data. In applying statistics to a s ...
. Ibori moved to
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
,
England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
in the 1980s where he married his wife, Theresa. He worked as a cashier at Wickes DIY store in
Ruislip Ruislip ( ) is a suburb in the London Borough of Hillingdon in northwest London. Prior to 1965 it was in Middlesex. Ruislip lies west-north-west of Charing Cross, London. The manor of Ruislip appears in the Domesday Book, and some of the ear ...
,
Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, former county in South East England, now mainly within Greater London. Its boundaries largely followed three rivers: the River Thames, Thames in the south, the River Lea, Le ...
. Returning to Nigeria, between 1994 and 1997 he served as a consultant to the Federal Government of President
Sani Abacha Sani Abacha (; (20 September 1943 – 8 June 1998) was a Nigerian military dictator and statesman who ruled Nigeria with an iron fist as military head of state from 1993 following a palace coup d'état until his death in 1998. Abacha's seiz ...
, in the areas of public policy formulation and implementation. In 1999, he Contested for Governor of Delta State.


Political career

Ibori's political career began in 1990 when he joined the National Republican Convention (NRC). In 1991, he was nominated to contest for the Federal House of Representatives seat, to represent Ethiope Federal Constituency. He lost the election to the Social Democratic Party (SDP) candidate. When the Sani Abacha Transition Programme kicked off, he joined the Grassroots Democratic Movement (GDM). The GDM clinched a good number of local, state and federal positions, including one of the three senatorial seats in the state. The transition programme was abruptly terminated with the death of Abacha. Ibori then with the leaders of other defunct political groups in Delta State, formed the Delta National Congress (DNC). The DNC later merged with many others of like ideas to birth the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). It was on the platform of the PDP that he contested and won the 9 January 1999 Delta State gubernatorial election. Proposed as governor of Delta State, under Nigerian law Ibori had to swear that he had no previous convictions. Using the false birth certificate and passport that he had used for the mortgage application in London, he passed the tests falsely, and was elected to become the governor from 1999. In 2003, he was re-elected as governor for another four-year term. At the PDP's ruling party's pre-election convention in 2006, Ibori was present to lift up the hand of the victorious Umaru Yar'Adua. After Yar'Adua was selected as their presidential candidate, Ibori was accused of bank-rolling Yar'Adua's 2007 campaign, and promised a Vice-Presidential position in return. But after Yar'Adua died in office, Vice-President
Goodluck Jonathan Goodluck Ebele Azikiwe Jonathan (born 20 November 1957) is a Nigerian politician who served as the president of Nigeria from 2010 to 2015. He lost the 2015 presidential election to former military head of state General Muhammadu Buhari and ...
succeeded Yar'Adua, an avowed political opponent of Ibori.


Corruption charges


United Kingdom charges

Ibori's corruption charges started with filling of petitions by his kinsmen under the auspices of Delta State Elders and Stateholders Forum influenced by the foremost Ijaw leader, Edwin Clark, , who was also the former Minister of Information. The petition was sent to Nuhu Ribadu, the head of Nigeria's financial crimes agencies who initially failed to act on the petition which made the Forum, who, with other activists, revealed Ibori's crimes and made spirited efforts to bring Ibori and EFCC before court to compel Ibori's prosecution with the aid of their lawyer Kayode Ajulo. In 2007, the Metropolitan Police raided the London offices of barrister Bhadresh Gohil. Hidden in a wall behind a fireplace, they found computer
hard drive A hard disk drive (HDD), hard disk, hard drive, or fixed disk is an electro-mechanical data storage device that stores and retrieves digital data using magnetic storage with one or more rigid rapidly rotating hard disk drive platter, pla ...
s containing details of a myriad off-shore companies, run for Ibori by Gohil, fiduciary agent Daniel Benedict McCann, and corporate financier Lambertus De Boer. All of these men were later jailed for a total of 30 years. As a result of these corruption allegations, the United Kingdom courts froze Ibori's assets, valued at about £17 million ($35 million), in early August 2007. His wife, Nkoyo, was arrested at
Heathrow Airport Heathrow Airport , also colloquially known as London Heathrow Airport and named ''London Airport'' until 1966, is the primary and largest international airport serving London, the capital and most populous city of England and the United Kingdo ...
in London on 1 November 2007, in connection with the probe of her husband's assets, particularly in the United Kingdom. She was released after being questioned. In an exclusive interview with
CNN Cable News Network (CNN) is a multinational news organization operating, most notably, a website and a TV channel headquartered in Atlanta. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable ne ...
, Ibori denied allegations against him claiming they were politically motivated. He accused Nuhu Ribadu and the UK Courts of playing politics.


First set of Nigerian charges

On 12 December 2007, Ibori was arrested by the
Economic and Financial Crimes Commission The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) is a Nigerian law enforcement and anti-graft agency that investigates financial crimes and unknown transactions such as advance fee fraud (419 fraud) and money laundering. The EFCC was establ ...
(EFCC) at the
Kwara State Kwara () is a state in Western Nigeria, bordered to the east by Kogi State, to the north by Niger State, and to the south by Ekiti, Osun, and Oyo states, while its western border makes up part of the international border with Benin. Its ca ...
Lodge in Asokoro, Abuja. The charges against him include theft of public funds, abuse of office, and
money laundering Money laundering is the process of illegally concealing the origin of money obtained from illicit activities (often known as dirty money) such as drug trafficking, sex work, terrorism, corruption, and embezzlement, and converting the funds i ...
. These corruption charges brought against Ibori by the government of former President Obasanjo are among many allegations by anticorruption czar Nuhu Ribadu against former officials of the Peoples Democratic Party PDP. Ribadu additionally alleged that Ibori attempted to bribe him to drop the charges with a cash gift of $15 million, which Ribadu immediately lodged in the
Central Bank of Nigeria The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) is the central bank and apex monetary authority of Nigeria established by the CBN Act of 1958 and commenced operations on 1 July 1959. The major regulatory objectives of the bank as stated in the CBN Act are t ...
CBN. The cash remains in the CBN as an exhibit. On 17 December 2009, A Federal High Court sitting in Asaba, Delta State, discharged and acquitted Ibori of all 170 charges of corruption brought against him by EFCC. The EFCC filed a notice of appeal against 17 December 2009 judgement, and began a new round of investigations on the former governor following a petition by members of the Delta State Elders, Leaders and Stakeholders Forum, which was made available to the public in March 2010.


Second set of Nigerian charges

In April 2010, about three months after the take over of government by former President
Goodluck Jonathan Goodluck Ebele Azikiwe Jonathan (born 20 November 1957) is a Nigerian politician who served as the president of Nigeria from 2010 to 2015. He lost the 2015 presidential election to former military head of state General Muhammadu Buhari and ...
, Ibori's case file was reopened. A new allegation that he embezzled N40 billion ($266 million) was pressed against him. Attempts to arrest him were unsuccessful. It was reported that he fled from
Abuja Abuja (; , ) is the capital city of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, strategically situated at the geographic midpoint of the country within the Federal Capital Territory (Nigeria), Federal Capital Territory (FCT). As the seat of the Federal G ...
to
Lagos Lagos ( ; ), or Lagos City, is a large metropolitan city in southwestern Nigeria. With an upper population estimated above 21 million dwellers, it is the largest city in Nigeria, the most populous urban area on the African continent, and on ...
and then to the creeks of Oghara, his homeland in the
Niger Delta The Niger Delta is the delta of the Niger River sitting directly on the Gulf of Guinea on the Atlantic Ocean in Nigeria. It is located within nine coastal southern Nigerian states, which include: all six states from the South South geopolitic ...
. It was reported that he has been guarded by armed militias and they once had a shoot out with government security forces. He claimed that the charges were frivolous and that he was a victim of political persecution. In April 2010, Ibori fled Nigeria, prompting the EFCC to request the assistance of
Interpol The International Criminal Police Organization – INTERPOL (abbreviated as ICPO–INTERPOL), commonly known as Interpol ( , ; stylized in allcaps), is an international organization that facilitates worldwide police cooperation and crime cont ...
. On 12 July 2010 the Governor of the CBN, Malam Sanusi Lamido revealed that Ibori had used Delta State as collateral for N40 billion loan when he was governor.


Arrest in Dubai, extradition to UK

On 13 May 2010, Ibori was arrested in
Dubai Dubai (Help:IPA/English, /duːˈbaɪ/ Help:Pronunciation respelling key, ''doo-BYE''; Modern Standard Arabic, Modern Standard Arabic: ; Emirati Arabic, Emirati Arabic: , Romanization of Arabic, romanized: Help:IPA/English, /diˈbej/) is the Lis ...
,
United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE), or simply the Emirates, is a country in West Asia, in the Middle East, at the eastern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is a Federal monarchy, federal elective monarchy made up of Emirates of the United Arab E ...
under Interpol arrest warrants, issued from United Kingdom courts and enacted by the Metropolitan Police. Ibori was granted bail pending an extradition hearing. A spokesman for the Metropolitan Police confirmed that the United Kingdom would "seek Mr Ibori's extradition". The Nigerian government and the United Kingdom then agreed to work together on Ibori's extradition to the United Kingdom. even as his movement became restricted by the Dubai authority. Punch Newspaper however reported on 27 May 2010, that Ibori was seeking political asylum in Dubai. Ibori's case and extradition became one of the longest, most complex and expensive operations mounted by
Scotland Yard Scotland Yard (officially New Scotland Yard) is the headquarters of the Metropolitan Police, the territorial police force responsible for policing Greater London's London boroughs, 32 boroughs. Its name derives from the location of the original ...
in recent years. Prosecutors alleged that companies owned by Ibori and his family were beneficiaries from the sale of state assets, including shares in a mobile telephone operator, as well as crude oil deliveries. The EFCC confirmed on Thursday 10 June 2010, that Ibori was in custody awaiting extradition to the UK.


Conviction of Associates

In London, where Ibori is being sought in the case of money laundering, the authority continued with the prosecution of his associates who were in the dock for helping Ibori to launder money. On 1 and 2 June 2010, UK juries found James Ibori's sister, Christine Ibie-Ibori and his associate, Udoamaka Okoronkwo, guilty on counts of money laundering, in a verdict delivered at the Southwark Crown Court, London. Mr. James Ibori, via his media aide released a statement questioning the validity of the verdict which he claimed absolved the two other women, Ms Okoronkwo and Adebimpe Pogoson who were charged alongside his sister. The jury's verdict of 2 June 2010 however returned a guilty decision against Okoronkwo as well. Christine Ibie-Ibori and Udoamaka Okoronkwo were each sentenced to 5 years in prison on Monday 7 June 2010 by the UK court even as the defense counsel pleaded for mercy that the convicts were merely manipulated by James Ibori.


Conviction

On 27 February 2012, accused of stealing US$250 million from the Nigerian public purse, Ibori pleaded guilty to ten counts of money laundering and conspiracy to defraud at Southwark Crown Court,
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
. Following the guilty plea entered by Ibori, the EFCC brought before an Appeal Court the 6 year old ruling of a Federal High Court in Asaba which acquitted Ibori in 2009. They EFCC sought the court to set aside the ruling of the lower court on the grounds that the presiding judge, Justice Awokulehin, erred in law while delivering his judgement. A three-man panel of justices at the Benin Division of the Court of Appeal on 15 May 2014 ruled that the ex- governor has a case to answer. With this judgment, the coast is clear for Ibori to face further trial in Nigeria upon the completion of his jail term in London. On Tuesday, 17 April 2012, Ibori was sentenced to 13 years by Southwark Crown Court for his crimes. Among possessions confiscated were: *A house in
Hampstead Hampstead () is an area in London, England, which lies northwest of Charing Cross, located mainly in the London Borough of Camden, with a small part in the London Borough of Barnet. It borders Highgate and Golders Green to the north, Belsiz ...
, north London, for £2.2m * A property in
Shaftesbury Shaftesbury () is a town and civil parish in Dorset, England. It is on the A30 road, west of Salisbury, Wiltshire, Salisbury and north-northeast of Dorchester, Dorset, Dorchester, near the border with Wiltshire. It is the only significant hi ...
,
Dorset Dorset ( ; Archaism, archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by Somerset to the north-west, Wiltshire to the north and the north-east, Hampshire to the east, t ...
, for £311,000 * A £3.2m mansion in Sandton, near
Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu language, Zulu and Xhosa language, Xhosa: eGoli ) (colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, Jo'burg or "The City of Gold") is the most populous city in South Africa. With 5,538,596 people in the City of Johannesburg alon ...
,
South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...
* A fleet of armoured Range Rovers valued at £600,000 * A £120,000
Bentley Continental GT The Bentley Continental GT is a grand touring car manufactured and marketed by the British company Bentley Motors since 2003. A two-door coupé or convertible, and has four seats, it was the first new Bentley released after the company's acqui ...
* A
Mercedes-Benz Mercedes-Benz (), commonly referred to simply as Mercedes and occasionally as Benz, is a German automotive brand that was founded in 1926. Mercedes-Benz AG (a subsidiary of the Mercedes-Benz Group, established in 2019) is based in Stuttgart, ...
Maybach 62 The Maybach 57 (chassis code W240) and 62 (chassis code V240) were the first automobile models of the Maybach brand since its revival by DaimlerChrysler AG (now Mercedes-Benz Group AG). They are derived from the Mercedes-Benz Maybach concept car ...
bought for €407,000 cash, that was shipped direct to his mansion in South Africa After the sentencing hearing, Sue Patten, head of the
Crown Prosecution Service The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) is the principal public agency for conducting criminal prosecutions in England and Wales. It is headed by the Director of Public Prosecutions. The main responsibilities of the CPS are to provide legal adv ...
central fraud group, said it would bid to confiscate the assets Ibori had acquired his riches "at the expense of some of the poorest people in the world".


Release

James Ibori was released from prison in December 2016 after a court order. He served 4 years of the 13 years to which he was sentenced. Afterward, James Ibori was deported to Nigeria, where he continued to retain political influence. In 2021, a British court ordered him to pay approximately £100 million, which was to be returned to the Nigerian government.\


See also

* List of governors of Delta State


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ibori, James 1958 births Living people Nigerian expatriates in the United Kingdom Governors of Delta State Grassroots Democratic Movement politicians Peoples Democratic Party state governors of Nigeria Corruption in Nigeria Politicians convicted of fraud People convicted of money laundering Prisoners and detainees of England and Wales Nigerian people imprisoned abroad Delta State politicians University of Benin (Nigeria) alumni Nigerian politicians convicted of corruption People named in the Panama Papers Urhobo people