Bagudu battles for post-tenure immunity to protect looted funds stashed in foreign banks

Governor Atiku Abubakar Bagudu of Kebbi State has been working surreptitiously to secure post-tenure immunity at the end of his second term in 2023. This is not unconnected with certain pending cases of corruption and money laundry allegations against him before he became governor, both in Nigeria and the U.S. 

Bagudu was alleged to have provided safe haven for an estimated $2.2 billion looted by late General Sani Abacha, who died in 1998, from the national treasury of Nigeria. 

The Kebbi governor still has reasons to fret over pending case of 99 million euros in cash and securities that Asiaciti facilitated its transfer from Ridley to a new international financial empire overseas many years ago, including controversial 282 million U.S. dollars in which the Nigerian government was beguiled to repurchase the country’s own debt for more than double what Nigeria would have paid to repurchase the debt in the open market; as well as alleged 90 million U.S.  dollars funding of Bagudu’s Ridley’s account at Credit Agricole Indosuez, from the Par bonds and the debt-buy-back fraud in 1998.

Governor Bagudu was alleged to be aiding some governors to launder funds looted from the treasuries of state governments to foreign banks.

A close source in Kebbi State government revealed that “those governors Bagudu helped to launder money to foreign banks are willing to support the Kebbi governor to secure post-tenure immunity and protection because if he goes down, they, too, will go down with him.” The source said that “this is the reason Bagudu aligns with the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) for 2023 elections, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu.” The source added that “Governor Bagudu also wants to be in the good book of President Muhammadu Buhari because of his corruption records and has been battling not to offend the president who brought him into government through the Abacha family.”

The various corruption allegation cases against Bagudu were not concluded or  closed before he became governor of Kebbi State, and has been enjoying immunity shielding him from prosecution.

The federal government during the administration of President Olusegun Obasanjo in 1999 secured the services Enrico Monfrini, a Swiss legal practitioner, to file legal suit for the recovery of assets traced to late Head of State of Nigeria, General Abacha, his family and associates in Switzerland, France, Jersey, the UK and other countries.

The legal proceedings resulted in the freezing of assets belonging to Bagudu, while tracking assets linked to the Abacha family. Bagudu challenged the federal government over the freezing of his foreign investments in the custody of his company, identified as Ridley Group.

President Obasanjo was said to be advised in 2003 to opt for out of court by entering into an “original settlement agreement” with Bagudu and a “global settlement agreement” with the Abachas, which he accepted. The former President was told that Bagudu has strong networks in many countries that would complicate his prosecution.

The government was said to have in the “final resolution” had an agreement with Bagudu as follows:

• The federal government would drop all civil and criminal claims against Bagudu in the UK
• Bagudu would drop all civil claims against the federal government
• Bagudu would forfeit some assets to the federal government
• He would then keep his investment portfolios

According to TheCable, “the agreement, dated August 21, 2003, was subsequently approved by a UK court, and registered with the National Crimes Agency (NCA) — with section 12 stating that “this Agreement is governed by English Laws, and the English Courts shall have jurisdiction over any disputes arising out of or in connection with it.”

As part of the settlement, the Abacha family was permitted to retain $100 million from $1 billion recovered funds from the Abaxhas, while the balance was repatriated to Nigeria.

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Obasanjo had later declared that “allowing the Abacha family to keep $100 million was the hardest decision of his life.”

Bagudu in 2004, transferred his controversial assets in Ridley to new companies under Blue Family Trusts, to sustain doing business in the UK, but there was a turn of events in 2013.

Our source further said that Obasanjo prosecuted Atiku Bagudu for money laundry, adding: “Atiku Bagudu was standing other trials in Britain. Obasanjo was advised to take plea bargaining.  Bagudu forfeited $500,000 dollars; he is still wanted in the U.S.  and that is why he cannot go to U.S.”

He added: “Mohammed Abacha was in prison. When he was released from prison, he refused to sign for the repatriation of 100 million dollars.

“Leaders in Kano gave Obasanjo the condition if he wants the support                of Kano                for his second term election, he should drop the corruption cases against Bagudu and Abacha Mohammed.

“They did the same with late President Umar    Yar’Adua, and former President Goodluck Jonathan.”

He alleged that “Governor Bagudu was consulting for governors on money laundry,    opening secret bank accounts.”

Our source recalled that a friend requested that he followed him to the residence of Bagudu sime years back, when they got there, they met a then governor from the south-south, another from the southwest, and one from the northwest.

Pandora Papers Exposure of how Bagudu looted billions, and hiding looted funds abroad

Bagudu and the Abacha plunder machine

The Abacha family was said to have  engaged in systematic plunder of the Nigerian treasury to the tune of billions of dollars, part of which was recovered  by the Nigerian government.

Bagudu was linked to the 3.6 billion U.S. dollars recovered from the Abacha family in 2020 after Abacha died in 1998.

Bagudu was also said to have forfeited 163 million U.S. dollars recovery from Jersey in 2003, which he negotiated with the U.S. and Jersey to repatriate the funds to Nigeria in an agreement for Jersey to withdraw an extradition request and concede to his free return to Nigeria. the paper disclosed that the Kebbi governor ‘spent six months in American federal prison in Houston while awaiting extradition to Jersey’. It added that “the deal to return the $163 million was to avoid that extradition.:

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It was alleged that the 308 U.S. dollars recovered from Jersey in 2020 was laundered by Governor Bagudu.

U.S. court documents and incorporation filings from the Pandora Papers leaks were cited to have revealed that ‘Bagudu was involved with all the offshore front companies and bank accounts – from the British Virgin Islands to Ireland, Switzerland, England, Guernsey, and Jersey – used to steal and launder billions of dollars belonging to Nigeria under the Abacha regime as a director, signatory on accounts or prime beneficiary.’

Bagudu pronounced prominent in “Plunder Machine,” ala Africa Confidential, established by late Abacha for stealing funds from Nigeria’s treasury by Abacha’s family, officials, and associates, complemented by established western and local banks and offshore enablers.

American investigators said that during the pressure for the forfeiture of stolen funds laundered through the U.S., court documents showed that the criminal network used fraudulent schemes to make dirty money.

According to the findings, the court in Washington, D.C. was told that “One was “security vote fraud,” whereby Abacha and his National Security Adviser, Ismaila Gwarzo, and others were said to have stolen more than two billion U.S. dollars by “fraudulently and falsely representing that the funds were to be used for national security purposes.” Between 1994 and 1998, they were said to have made over 60 false claims of “security emergencies” to withdraw huge funds from the Central Bank of Nigeria, then headed by Paul Ogumah.

“Rather than use the funds for national security purposes, the stolen money was transported out of Nigeria and deposited into accounts controlled by General Abacha’s associates, including Mohammed Abacha and Bagudu,”

The paper indicated that other schemes were bribery and a dramatic conspiracy by Abacha’s son, Mohammed, and Bagudu to lend money stolen from Nigeria back to Nigeria “with zero risks and at an enormous profit” by using proceeds of the security vote fraud to purchase hundreds of millions of dollars of U.S. dollar-denominated Nigerian bonds, called Nigerian Par Bonds, NPBs.

As part of the Brady Bond programme of the 1980s, the NPBs were U.S. dollar-denominated securities whose interest payments were guaranteed by the U.S. Treasury. The Brady Bond programme was created to help developing countries – like Nigeria – holding substantial debt to restructure their debt into bonds. Nigeria first offered the NPBs in 1992.

In another scheme, the investigators revealed, the conspirators were also said to have defrauded Nigeria of over 282  million U.S. dollars by causing the government to repurchase Nigeria’s own debt from one of their companies for more than double what Nigeria would have paid to repurchase the debt in the open market.

According to American investigators, the initial funding of Bagudu’s Ridley’s account at Credit Agricole Indosuez, London, to the tune of 90 million U.S.  dollars in 1998 was from the Par bonds and the debt-buy-back fraud.

The Ridley assets were later transferred to the Blue structure facilitated by Asiaciti and are the outstanding defendant assets being targeted for forfeiture by the United States, court documents showed.

The U.S. filed its forfeiture litigation in 2014. It said, then, the assets held by the Blue holdings, traceable to the old Ridley structure, and domiciled in London investment portfolios held with Waverton and James Hambro, were last valued at a total of 96 million euros.

Bagudu’s brother, Ibrahim, continues to claim the assets, seeking to prevent their forfeiture to Nigeria, court documents showed.

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However, on inquiries by The Guardian of UK, including PREMIUM TIMES and ABC of Australia, Nicola Boulton of PCB Byrne, lawyers said “all monies held by the Blue Trusts are lawfully held,” citing a 2003 settlement between Bagudu and the Nigerian government under then-President Olusegun Obasanjo.

Meanwhile, Governor Bagudu is tying himself to the Tinubu presidential campaign envisaging protection if APC retains power aft5ert the 2023 general elections.