The United States Justice Department has declared the final resolution of two civil cases which sought to confiscate luxury assets that were acquired through foreign corruption offenses and laundered in the United States.
The cases were related to former Minister of Petroleum Resources, Diezani Alison-Madueke, and her business associates Kolawole Akanni Aluko and Olajide Omokore. The department has recovered approximately $53.1 million in cash and a promissory note worth $16 million, which constitutes the net liquidated value of the defendants’ assets.
Court documents revealed that Aluko and Omokore conspired with others to pay bribes to Diezani from 2011 to 2015, in exchange for her influence in awarding lucrative oil contracts to their companies. The proceeds from these contracts, amounting to over $100 million, were then laundered in and through the United States to purchase various assets, including luxury real estate in California and New York, as well as a 65-meter superyacht called Galactica Star.
The cases were investigated by the FBI’s International Corruption Squad in the Washington Field Office and the IRS Criminal Investigation, with assistance from the FBI Los Angeles Field Office. The cases were prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Michael W. Khoo and Joshua L. Sohn of the Criminal Division’s Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section.
The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Texas provided substantial assistance. These cases were brought under the Kleptocracy Asset Recovery Initiative, which aims to forfeit the proceeds of foreign official corruption and, where appropriate, use the recovered assets to benefit those harmed by these acts of corruption and abuse of office.
The FBI formed International Corruption Squads across the country in 2015 to tackle the national and international implications of foreign corruption. People with information about possible proceeds of foreign corruption located in or laundered through the United States are advised to contact federal law enforcement.