Alamieyeseigha was charged with money laundering in London in 2005, the police found that he had $3.2 million in cash and bank accounts and $15 million in real estate holdings there. The United States Justice Department won a forfeiture judgment against him in 2012 for money laundering and corruption with justice officials saying he accumulated millions of dollars’ worth of property and bank accounts around the world during his six years as governor, a period in which he was paid a total of $81,000 in salary and declared $248,000 in income from all sources.Īfter Mr. However, in a move that triggered public backlash, the then President Goodluck Jonathan later granted him State pardon in 2013. On July 26, 2007, Alamieyeseigha pleaded guilty before a Nigerian court to six charges and was sentenced to two years in prison on each charge however, because the sentences were set to run concurrently and the time was counted from the point of his arrest nearly two years before the sentences, his actual sentence was relatively short. Said to have amassed a fortune in foreign bank accounts, the late Alamieyeseigha acquired houses in London, California and South Africa and an oil refinery in Ecuador, all while tapping public coffers to build an airport in his hometown and an Olympic-size stadium in the state capital, among other public projects.Īlamieyeseigha was impeached on allegations of corruption on Decemand Goodluck Jonathan, his deputy at the time, took over. He jumped bail in December 2005 from the United Kingdom by allegedly disguising himself as a woman, though Alamieyeseigha denied this claim. He was found to own four homes in London worth an alleged £10 million. Later they found a total of £1.8m ($3.2m) in cash and bank accounts. At the time of his arrest, Metropolitan police found about £1m in cash in his London home. “It is worthy to note that in line with the terms of this agreement, Mr President has already approved the expected sum to be utilised for the implementation of a health centre project for the benefit of the people of Bayelsa state and to be monitored by the civil society organisations and the federal government, through the federal ministry of justice,” she said.Īlamieyeseigha, who died at the age of 62, in October 2015 was detained in London on charges of money laundering in September 2005. “Following the court order, the FRN and the USA have negotiated and finalized the terms of the asset return agreement. The United States government, in collaboration with the Federal Republic of Nigeria initiated and completed forfeiture proceedings against certain real property and investment funds located in Maryland and Massachusetts against the former governor which resulted in the net forfeiture to the Government of United States of America totalling the sum of $954,807.40.” “This asset return arose from the forfeiture and recovery of approximately $1 million USD linked to the corrupt practices of former Bayelsa state governor, D.S.P. The development is coming 18 years following Alamieyeseigha’s impeachment as Governor and eight years after his demise in October 2015 at the age of 62 years.Īccording to Leonard, the former governor’s official salary during his tenure as a public servant from 1999 to his impeachment in 2005 did not match the said amount.īeatrice Jedy-Agba, Solicitor-General of the Federation, who represented Nigeria at the briefing said President Muhammadu Buhari has directed that the said sum be utilised immediately in developing the healthcare of Bayelsa State. ![]() US Ambassador to Nigeria, Mary Beth Leonard, who announced the development at a press briefing on Thursday afternoon in Abuja, said Alamieyeseigha accumulated millions of dollars through abuse of office, and money laundering The United States and the Federal Government have signed an agreement for the repatriation of $954,000 loot traced to the former Governor of Bayelsa State, late Diepreye Alamieyeseigha. ![]() Buhari orders immediate funds deployment for Bayelsa healthcare.
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