Group demands fresh investigation after EFCC accuses billionaire businessman, Benedict Peters, associates of money laundering worth $38m.

The Transparency Nigeria Group, TNG, has demanded a comprehensive investigation into allegations of money laundering raised against Marine Assets Limited, Airsafe Aviation, Jokai Global Services and Sheyi Godfrey Money.

In a statement released by the Group’s Communications Director, Dahiru Mohammed, on Tuesday, August 22, 2023, it stated that Money, a known surrogate of exiled billionaire businessman, Benedict Peters, was accused by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, of money laundering through several companies in 2022.

It also said after Money and his lawyers sought and failed to get a court injunction stopping the investigation into alleged criminal dealings, the EFCC under its now suspended chairman, Abdulrasheed Bawa, inexplicably scuttled its own investigation after spending millions of taxpayers’ funds on the initiatial investigation.

It is imperative that the new EFCC leadership should investigate this case and provide the public with an update regarding its findings

Given Mr Money’s direct connections to the exiled billionaire Benedict Peters, who allegedly assisted the former oil minister Diezani Allison Madueke, with perpetrating fraud against the Nigerian state, this particular case should be carefully investigated in a transparent manner.

“This alleged case of money laundering appears to be a no-brainer,” the statement reads in part.

The group said in 2022, EFCC stated before a Federal High Court that it had launched an investigation into several firms that were allegedly used to move $38 million through accounts domiciled with the United Bank for Africa, UBA.

TNG also said all the firms being investigated had ties to Sheyi Money and by extension his benefactor, Benedict Peters, saying the EFCC had claimed to be investigating them and others for conspiracy, money laundering and stealing about $38 million paid into Marine Assets’ accounts within four months.

Speaking further, the group quoted the EFCC to have said that on January 25, 2019, it received intelligence “bordering on monumental case of conspiracy, money laundering and stealing against the first plaintiff (Marine Assets), its alter ego, and some associated companies and individuals.

“The intelligence reveals that the first plaintiff, its directors alongside other companies like Airsafe Aviation Global Limited, used multiple accounts to move funds in and out of Nigeria to the tune of $38 million between September 2017 and December 2018, without any clear underlying/legitimate business transaction.

On receipt of the intelligence, the defendant (EFCC) commenced investigation by writing to relevant commercial banks, the Corporate Affairs Commission, the Federal Inland Revenue Services, FIRS, amongst other agencies of government.”

EFCC was said to have informed the court that it interviewed some individuals and companies featured in the investigation, with the anti-agency adding that “preliminary investigation revealed, among other findings, that both first plaintiff and Airsafe Aviation Global Limited were incorporated by the Corporate Affairs Commission, CAC, in 2018 with the names of Messrs Chukwunwike ChuksMacjulie and Money Sheyi Godfrey as the directors and shareholders.”

Since incorporation, it alleged that there was no record of any business done by the first plaintiff and Airsafe Aviation Global Limited.

“Between March 2018 and April 2019, one Jokai Global Services Limited transferred to the UBA Plc accounts of the 1st plaintiff the sums of $89.7 million and N18.5 billion,” EFCC disclosed.

“Between March 2018 and April 2019, the same Jokai Global Services Limited transferred into the UBA Plc account of Airsafe Aviation Global Limited the sums of $13 million and N1.4 billion.” it added.

According to the anti-graft agency, the transactions that generated the funds were vague and obscure, pointing out that none of the companies mentioned and others featured in the EFCC intelligence declared their activities by way of filing financial statements and annual reports to regulatory authorities.

“These companies never paid taxes despite the humongous payments they received into their accounts,” EFCC stated further.

“The high volume of funds received into the accounts of the first plaintiff shortly after its incorporation necessitated the need to even inquire into its tax records with a view to determine the lawfulness or otherwise of the financial activities of the first plaintiff.”

The Transparency Nigeria Group are now demanding that the EFCC must act on its constitutional mandate and reopen the investigation.