It is no longer news that businesswoman and socialite, Aisha Achimugu has been in the eye of the storm over fraud allegations, prompting her to flee t
It is no longer news that businesswoman and socialite, Aisha Achimugu has been in the eye of the storm over fraud allegations, prompting her to flee the country. What is however news is the extent of the fraud allegations she is entangled in.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has revealed some details of a web of complex financial dealings that set off socialite Aisha Achimugu’s investigation for money laundering, Ponzi scheme, possession of unlawfully obtained properties, and other financial crimes.
Achimugu, along with Maxwell Odum of MBA Trading and Capital Limited, is at the centre of the probe.
Recall that the EFCC arrested her at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport at about 5 a.m. on Tuesday, just as she arrived from the United Kingdom. Tuesday’s arrest came less than 24 hours after a Federal High Court judge in Abuja who is sitting on the fundamental rights enforcement, she earlier filed to block her arrest, ordered her on Monday to surrender to EFCC for interrogation.
On Wednesday, the EFCC produced her in court where the judge, Inyang Ekwo, gave the anti-corruption agency 24 hours to release her on bail. Ironically, Justice Ekwo who ordered her release got suspended from the bench for one year without pay over corruption on the same day he was issuing out the court order.
Achimugu and the EFCC have filed counter-submissions in court to persuade the judge to rule in their favour.
EFCC investigator Chris Odofin, who swore to the counter-affidavit, said many of the companies share similar addresses in Abuja’s Maitama district. According to Odofin, some of the companies owned by Achimugu, classified as Designated Non-Financial Businesses and Professions (DNFBPs), failed to file mandatory transaction reports despite making and receiving significant payments. He said the companies do not file their mandatory transactions reports for the prescribed amounts of payments and withdrawals made in the accounts in line with the said Act.
Although businesses that fall under the DNFBPs category are not traditional financial institutions like commercial banks, they are still required under the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, to follow anti-money laundering rules because they handle large sums of money. Under the Act, DNFBPs are legally obligated to report any transactions involving large payments or withdrawals to the relevant authorities. Odofin, the EFCC detective, accused Achimugu of using bank accounts held by her companies to acquire, possess, and disguise the origin of proceeds from illegal activities.
These activities, Odofin stated, include obtaining money by false pretence, carrying on banking business without appropriate licence, carrying on investment business without appropriate licence and money laundering, perpetrated by Maxwell Chizi Odum, MBA Trading and Capital Investment Limited, MBA lorex Limited, among others.
The list of companies allegedly used to perpetrate the financial scam include Sam Engineering Foundation, Falek Concept Limited, Ocean Gate Engineering Oil and Gas Limited, and Wishwich Konzept Limited, Bradap and Company Ltd, Koncept Digital Integrated Services Limited, Blue Broadband Solutions Limited, Miss Peace Nigeria Foundation, Bilview Energy Limited, Ay-Dol International Limited, Blue Pay Limited. Others are Bluewave Exploration and Production Limited, Rail Conference & Exhibition, Blue Auth Koncept Limited, Deepwater, Producers Nigeria Limited, Ww Luxury Limited, Metrocorp Apartments Ltd, Driveme Fcg. Net, Altex Engineering Limited, and Gitel Eco Solution Ltd Services.
On 29 April 2021, the EFCC said it received a petition from one Christian Agadaga, and over three thousand Nigerians, against Odum and MBA Trading and Capital Investment Limited. The petitioners accused Odum and MBA Trading and Capital Investment Limited of defrauding them of over N200 billion under the false pretence that they have the capacity to invest the money for yields. The investors said they were promised that the Ponzi scheme would yield an interest of 10 to 15 per cent every month. However, the investors did not get a return on their investment, the petitioners told EFCC.
EFCC said that in a similar trend, Ocean Gate Engineering Oil and Gas LTD received from MBA Trading and Capital Investment Limited N958 million on 6 October 2020. Weeks after, on 26 October, Ocean Gate Engineering Oil and Gas Ltd- transferred N900 million to MBA Trading and Capital Investment Limited. The balance of N58 million was used by Achimugu. She also withdrew cash on 16 and 22 December 2020 as well as 22 February 2021. EFCC said these transactions were part of a Ponzi scheme and money laundering activities.
EFCC’s filing shows the investigation of Achimugu’s activities started long before news broke last month. It means, she was already under EFCC’s scrutiny by the time she threw an elaborate party on the Caribbean Island of Grenada in commemoration of her 50th birthday in January last year. Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu was a guest at the party. EFCC investigator, Odofin, recalled that Achimugu voluntarily visited the Port Harcourt Zonal Directorate of the commission on 12 February 2024, about a month after the Grenada party. According to the EFCC, Achimugu, accompanied by her lawyer Darlington Ozurumba, was received courteously and treated humanely. The EFCC claims that Achimugu made verbal representations, which she later put into writing in an extra-judicial statement dated 12 February 2024. The agency said she was not detained and proceeded to her destination after making the statement.
The EFCC also revealed that it has already received from Achimugu a refund of N58 million identified as proceeds of crime acquired through one of her firms, MBA Trading and Capital Investment Limited. Despite the serious allegations, the EFCC stated that at no point was Achimugu harassed, detained, or compelled to make statements.
Achimugu broadly denied wrongdoing in her suit. A supporting affidavit sworn to by Ifeanyi Otuya, who identified as Achimugu’s brother, described her as an internationally renowned industrialist, businesswoman, law abiding citizen and philanthropist whose exemplary leadership and commitment to empowering communities have earned her international recognition. He wrote that her inability to honour EFCC’s invitation when she purportedly absconded the country was due to a medical trip abroad. Otuya added that declaring her wanted by the EFCC has had adverse publicity and negative perception against her. He also said the actions of the EFCC have not only undermined her professional credibility but have also jeopardised existing business relationships, deterred potential investors and partners, and subjected the applicant to unwarranted public scrutiny and distress.
On 28 March, the EFCC published a public notice declaring Achimugu wanted after she failed to honour the agency’s request for an interview scheduled for 5 March. Following her failure to appear at the EFCC’s office, the agency believed she had fled the country. On 3 April, she filed a fundamental human rights enforcement suit to restrain the EFCC and other agencies sued as co-defendants from arresting or detaining her. Other agencies she sued alongside EFCC are the Nigeria Police Force, Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), State Security Service (SSS), Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), and the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS).
