Access Bank Plc s no doubt one of the biggest banks in Nigeria by reason of the fact that it acquired the for Intercontinental Bank Limited.

But despite the claims by Access Bank that they are one of Nigeria most trusted banks; an ongoing investigation by Transparency For Nigeria has revealed that beyond such adverts being displayed lies a battle currently on, between them and their ex employees.
Some aggrieved staff of fomer (ICB) revealed how they were forced out of their jobs by the Access bank’s former Group Managing Director, Mr. AIG Aigboje Imoukhuede in a military fashion.
According to our sources, in August/September 2011, the management of Intercontinental Bank Plc (ICB) established a gratuity scheme for all staff that had been in the employment of the bank for five (5) years backward, (i.e. staff that had been in employment of the bank since October 2006 and earlier).
This scheme we gathered gave all the beneficiaries a certain amount of money duly communicated to each of them by the then Head of Human Resources, Abila Amos, via a computer generated URL which only the beneficiary can access. While this was on, there were rumours of IBL merging with Access Bank, which agitated the staffers, who as fellow bankers are aware of the brutal management style of Access Bank. As time click daily, the rumors became truth, prompting most of the bankers trying to tender their resignation letters.
This option was considered to enable them collect their gratuity and move on with their lives. “The reason for this was that we knew the characters of Access Bank management team that they would cancel the whole arrangement immediately they move in (if they win the bid that was on going at that time)”, stated our reliable source.
The option of resignation never went down well with ICB management who feared that the staff leaving in droves will affect the merger talk. To forestall the situation and protect both the staff and the bank, some steps were taken in September 2011:
1. Set up a Board of Trustee, with initial members chosen in their personal capacities who are to act in the best interest and on behalf of the beneficiaries. Their responsibilities and powers are contained in a document called “Deed of Appointment”, where it is stated inter alia that they are not to take instruction from ICB management or “any successor-in-title” of ICB. And that they are to act in accordance with the Law of Trusteeship of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. The document also limits the membership of the board to between 5 and 7 persons and also vested the responsibility of filling any vacancy that may exist in board of trustee membership (in case of resignation of any member of the board) to beneficiaries who are otherwise called members of the scheme.
2. The gratuity scheme was thus moved to three Pension Fund Managers, via: Crusader Sterling Pension, First Trustees Nigeria Limited and NLPC Pension Fund Administrators Ltd. This was done to demonstrate to beneficiaries that the fund is already earned by them and that no successor-in title of ICB should intermeddle with the fund within legality confine.
3. There is also a carefully drafted document executed by the pension managers which contains how the funds should be managed and also compels them to take instruction from the board of trustees only among other things.
As soon as this steps to secure the fund and make sure that no successor-in-title is allowed to tamper with the gratuity fund; the ICB staff had their mind relaxed and set to work normally.
Access Bank Comes In With Military ‘Operation Just Cause’
One month after ICB made efforts to protect her staff, October 17, 2011, Access Bank management entered the premises of ICB to solidify the merger arrangement. We gathered that their initial arrangement was to run the two entities for six (6) months separately before actual merging of the two entities. But the desperate Access Bank management twisted the whole scenario and immediately commenced actual merging of the entities the moment they moved into ICB premises.
Knowing the amount of gratuity involved, they promptly introduced a kind of programme alien to all ICB staff the in the name of “Operation Just Cause”- “OJC”.
“The programme is such that only ICB staffs are allocated accounts at a particular date and the total funds in those accounts must not dwindle, neither must it be stagnant, but it must only grow. If the funds reduced, the staff earned negative, if it stagnated the staff earned zero and if it grew, the staff earned positive. This exercise did not separate between marketing and non-marketing staff. A date (known only to the Access Bank management) was set to take a snap shot performance of all employees”, confided our source
In a Gestapo style of leadership, on January 27, 2012 all ICB legacy staff that scored negative on OJC parameters as at December 2011 were sacked without prior notice in what they call ‘cutoff day’, which experience showed that customers withdraw money during the yuletide. The affected staffs were asked to report to various locations to collect their disengagement letters. At those locations were heavily armed security personnel.
“On that same date, the Group Managing Director of Access Bank, Mr. AIG Aigboje Imoukhuede called a meeting of the remaining ICB staff at EKO Hotels and Suites and told us that anybody that wishes to resign can do so within 7 days and that the bank will pay such employee severance package. And that after the 7 days, the opportunity shall be withdrawn.
Looking at the hostile disposition of the Access Bank Management team many ICB legacy employees who were not sacked relied on the GMD’s promise of severance payment and resigned their appointments believing that they can forge a meaningful future for themselves using their respective gratuity funds (for those that qualified for it) and the severance package promised the GMD”, said a source
As a Machiavellian bank, we gathered that Access Bank induced the Board of Trustee to sign-out the gratuity funds to them.” As a matter of fact, our gratuity fund was used by Access Bank to settle the severance package promised by their GMD. In essence the fruit of many years of toils and labour that staff who qualified for the gratuity scheme (which the management we worked for valued and compensated us for) was taken away with impunity, by a management team who never cared for us.” bemoaned a dependable source
Attempts were made to get Access Bank to pay the over 2000 staff of ICB who either resigned their appointments or were sacked, but all efforts fell on deaf ears. Documents available to us reveals that this ‘fraud’ which took away the staffers gratuity is worth N7 billion. A source within the top hierarchy of Access Bank revealed to us that the bank will never pay the money, as such is too big to dispense with. “Journalist, that money can cause the bank to lose stability if they pay. Only the court can force us to pay them, and it will even be gradual, not once”, he confided
The staff decided to go to the National Industrial Court (NIC) having sought audience with other regulatory bodies, with none of them ready to pay due attention to them. We gathered that the regulatory bodies who contacted Access Bank to appear before them were immediately compromised and the case dropped.
Surprisingly the court ruled that the Board of Trustees are agents of a known principal and not Trustees as they were appointed to be!
“The way the judiciary – National Industrial Court (NIC) – is twisting the case shows obviously that many secret arrangements and understandings are at play. Because it cannot be understood why a learned judge will rule on a case like this, without fair and just consideration to terms and conditions underlying the documented relationship” said a source. Their refusal with the Judgment led to their request that the case be transferred to another Judge.
In another court hearing on November 8 2013, the Current Judge presiding on the case ruled that the Board of Trustees appointed to manage the gratuity scheme were agents despite the fact that they were given the power of trustee as contained in the Law of Trusteeship of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
According to documents at our disposal, the ruling we gathered do not apply to the circumstance surrounding the creation of the gratuity scheme and appointment of the Board of Trustees who were saddled with the responsibility of managing the scheme. When Transparency For Nigeria contacted the Public relations department of Access Bank by mail, they promised to get back to us, but never did as at the time of filing in this report.
Meanwhile the case has been appealed, and a complaint letter has been written to the president of NIC by the counsel to the staff members which caused NIC to take the case away from the judge that gave the ruling. The court is yet to release any information about the new judge.

HOW ACCESS BANK MANAGER STOLE MITV BOSS N1.2B DEPOSIT + How He Was Issued Fake Bank Statement Of Account/Deposit Certificates

These are not best of times for Alhaji Muri Gbadeyanka Busari, CEO of Murhi International Limited, owner of MITV and Star FM, as he has been dragged before the Special Fraud Unit (SFU) over allegation of fraud and money laundering charges leveled against him by his bankers, Access Bank Plc.The Osun State-born businessman is being dragged before the SFU alongside a former senior manager of the bank, Mr. Olayinka Sanni, who also doubled as the relationship officer to Murhi International Limited. In a counter-petition addressed to the SFU, Access Bank stated that on November 29, 2011, it petitioned the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) over a case of conspiracy between Murhi International Limited and Mr. Olayinka Sanni to defraud the bank. The bank affirmed that Mr. Sanni was a senior manager assigned to manage the customer’s account since he actually introduced the bank to the customer in the first place. It explained that based on investigations conducted by the bank following two different petitions received from Stephen Fasawe and Co. on September 19, 2011 and yet another one from Pinhero and Co. on September 26, 2011 demanding a refund of the sum of N1.2billion which prompted the bank to petition EFCC.

The lawyers also claimed in their petitions that Mr. Olayinka Sanni, who was then staff of the bank allegedly, gave Alhaji Busari fake statement of accounts and fake deposit certificates of the total sum of money deposited in Access Bank.

Globalmonitor investigations showed that Access Bank noticed some varying degrees of contradictions in the company’s claim even as it suspected that Olayinka might have soiled his hand in shady deal because of his access to the company’s accounts. Perhaps, this informed the decision of the bank to terminate Olayinka’s employment with the bank. The bank explained further that because of the need to be thorough since it suspected some sharp practices, it tried to match up all the documents in the transaction as stated in the bank records and in the demand letters and in the process discovered that the accounts were compromised and upon this startling discovery handed over Olayinka Sanni to the EFCC for further investigations and recovery of accounts in question aside from prosecution. The bank pointed out that, consequently, Access Bank and the customer were invited for meeting with the EFCC with a view to ascertaining the true position of the customer’s account. However, it revealed that it was taken aback when in the course of investigations into the matter, it was discovered that Alhaji Busari actually had a private business relationship with Olayinka Sanni which was not previously known at official level within the bank thus making it easy for the duo to carry out an illicit foreign exchange transaction. Access Bank declares: “The private relationship, as observed during the meeting might have led to the conspiracy of the duo to defraud the bank by initiating the claim of N1.2billion against the bank. This was further corroborated from the confession of Yinka Sanni during the meeting in the EFCC office in Lagos, that losses were sustained in the course of private business transactions between Alhaji Busari and himself.” It continues: “In December 2011, following several work on reconciliation of the transactions in the account of Murhi International Nigeria Limited among the parties (Access Bank team, SMD Consulting representing Murhi and EFCC team) it was decided and agreed by all parties that the sum of N247, 307,216.78 should be refunded to Murhi’s account as the other transactions could not be substantiated. In view of the agreed amount to be refunded, the bank pleaded with EFCC for the refund of N123, 653, 608, 40. “Consequently in January and February 2012, the agreed sum of N123, 653,608.40 each was credited to account nos: 00163233003 belonging to MURHI International Limited.” But it appeared that Alhaji Busari and Murhi International is not satisfied with the purported agreement. This prompted their lawyers to drag Access Bank to the SFU hoping to get a refund of the total amount being demanded. However, the bank is insisting the initial agreement was brokered following the intervention of the Deputy Commissioner of Police, Muazu Zubairu, the then Head of Operations of EFCC, Lagos, the bank also believe that the matter having being reported to the commission and the bank having met its obligations as agreed by all parties will lead to recovery of the amount of N237, 307, 216. 78 involved from Mr. Olayinka Sanni but till date, the bank is yet to recover any dime from the ex- staff. But sources close to the MITV boss insists that if truly the bank is convinced that its ex-staff may have siphoned part of the money, it should have taken full responsibility for the unwholesome action of its staff adding that the company would take the whole hog in ensuring justice is served in the matter. As its appears, there seems to be a heavy haze over the matter and the duo may end up in court of law to get justice.

Access Bank, CBN, Others Culpable In $6.8 Billion Petrol Subsidy Fraud-PREMIUM TIMES
ccess Bank financed the importation of about 40 per cent of the petrol brought into Nigeria in 2011 and received, into accounts at its branches, a similar percentage of the N2trillion the FG paid as subsidy during the period.

Access Bank and other Nigerian banks played major roles in the fuel subsidy scandal of 2011 and have several questions to answer, a PREMIUM TIMES investigation has shown.

Sources at Access Bank, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), and the oil industry say that although there is no apparent focus on the role of Nigerian banks in the whole scandal, some of them, particularly the major players like Access Bank helped perpetrate the fraud.

While N240billion was approved in the 2011 budget as petrol subsidy, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Nigeria’s finance minister last week told the Nigerian Senate that the Federal Government actually paid 2.19 trillion as subsidy to petrol importers.

Following pressure on the administration by civil society and other Nigerians over the implementation of the recommendations of the House of Representatives committee, which probed the fuel subsidy payment for 2011, the government set up two committees. A technical committee was first set up by the Finance Ministry, followed by a presidential committee, set up to review the work of the technical committee. Both committees were headed by Access Bank’s Group Managing Director, Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede.

Investigating himself

Aigboje Aig-ImoukhuedeThough Mr. Aig-Imoukhuede headed the two probes, Access Bank, which he heads, financed the biggest chunk of fuel importation for the 2011, which was characterised by large-scale fraud, our investigation has shown.

Sources at the CBN and documents have shown that the bank financed close to 40 per cent of the petrol imported to Nigeria, and for which subsidy was paid, in 2011.

“Access Bank financed about 40 per cent of the deals in 2011,” a top Access Bank staff familiar with the deal said. “So, if there was fraud in the 2011 subsidy scheme, then companies finance by access bank, even our bank or senior officials, perpetrated or benefitted from 40 per cent of the fraud.”

PREMIUM TIMES learnt that about 400 cargoes of petrol was imported into Nigerian in 2011 with almost 160 of them financed by Access. Some of the importers financed by Access bank include Sahara Energy, Eterna Plc, and Spog Petrochemicals Limited.

Eterna and Spog are two of the companies indicted by the House of Representatives committee in its report. Eterna was indicted for tax evasion; while Spog, owned by controversial Jide Omokore, a major financier of President Goodluck Jonathan’s election and beneficiary of various government largesse including juicy oil blocks, acquired in questionable manners, was indicted for getting approval to import petrol even before it was registered by the PPPRA. How that was done is difficult to decipher. But Access is its long-term financier.

Mr. Omokore is also married to Angela Jones, a senior official of Access Bank, who is currently in charge of Wealth Management at the bank. Ms. Jones, alongside Aig Aig-Imoukhuede, younger relative of the Access Bank GMD, also sits on the board of another company, Marina Securities.

The younger Aig-Imoukhuede is a co-owner of Ice Energy Petroleum Trading Company Limited which was also indicted by the Lower House.

Another company owned by Mr. Omokore, Ceoti International Limited, defaulted in its tax payment, the House committee discovered.

Validating Spog

Spog Petrochemicals which was alleged in a petition to the Attorney General of the Federation in 2011 to have imported 3000 metric tones of petrol despite receiving subsidy for 13,000 metric tonnes early 2011, came highly recommended by Mr. Aig-Imoukhuede’s Access Bank.

In a letter addressed to the executive secretary of PPPRA, dated May 31, 2011 and signed by Tope Ogunfusika and Ojeifoh Okosun, Access Bank stated that it had had a great relationship with Spog since 2006.

“We recommend the company (Spog) as being suitable for normal business engagements with your company (PPPRA),” the bank told PPPRA, in order to strengthen the company’s application to participate in the subsidy regime.

PREMIUM TIMES learnt that that letter helped shore-up the image of Spog which at that time was almost blacklisted by PPPRA over suspicion of underhand dealings.

Access Bank made no reports

Investigations show that Access Bank, into whose accounts the Federal Government paid about 40 per cent of the N2trillion subsidy, never reported any marketer either to the CBN or the PPPRA for underhand dealings.

“The bank was just interested in its money. As long as the marketers could get the money, even through subsidy, we (Access Bank) didn’t see a reason to report them to the CBN. Though we knew many of them were not selling any products,” our source stated.

Access wouldn’t comment on its role in the subsidy regime. Our reporter tried consistently for a week to get the bank’s reactions to the facts at our disposal. Its spokesperson, Segun Fafore, demanded an email enquiry on Thursday last week. By Thursday evening, Mr. Fafore, after receiving our emailed enquiry, called to say that the bank would respond to our enquiry on Friday. After failing to respond on Friday as promised, Mr. Fafore did not answer subsequent calls from our reporter.

Covering-up the banks

When the technical committee, headed by Mr. Aig-Imoukhuede, submitted its report, it identified 17 methods allegedly used by oil marketers to defraud the Federal Government.

Although the report is yet to be made public, sources knowledgeable about its content say the first method identified is the lack of evidence of sale proceeds of imported fuel with the financing banks.

In other words, though the banks paid for the imported petroleum products, the marketers probably sold the products behind the banks, diverted them, or did not even do any importation. The total sum for the unaccounted products according to the committee is N158billion.

This finding was however faulted by senior bank sources including top officials of the central bank of Nigeria (CBN), Nigeria’s banking regulator.

“Who did the banks complain to that there was no evidence of sale? Since the subsidy money was paid into the marketers’ accounts with the banks, why didn’t the banks complain to the CBN or even PPPRA that they had no evidence that any product was sold,” a top CBN source said.

“The truth is we know they were all involved in the scheme, they are just trying to exonerate themselves.”

Another bank source made reference to the membership of both the technical committee and the Presidential committee as reasons the committee would never indict or reveal the roles of the bank. Apart from Mr. Aig-Imoukhuede, who heads both committees, there are two other top bankers on the two committees: Sola David-Borha, the MD of Stanbic IBTC; and Onyinye Ahuchogu, a Deputy Director at the CBN, are members of the two committees.

“How can you want to investigate a sector where banks played a crucial role, and you appoint heads of the same banks to lead the probe. Can they ever probe themselves,” a top CBN source queried.

Ignoring the banks

Nigerian banks, described by a top industry source, as “very complicit if thorough checks are done,” have been overlooked by previous probes of the subsidy scam, including the technical committee.

It is not only Mr. Aig-Imoukhuede’s committees that avoided the complicity of the banks in the scandal, the House of Representatives committee, which did a live telecast of its probe, and whose report has been widely acknowledged as thorough, also overlooked the banks.

“We focused more on the marketers and regulators,” a member of the House committee told PREMIUM TIMES. “But while investigating, we knew there was no way they could exclude themselves from the scam. I just don’t know how they escaped our view. But I can assure you, they are complicit.”

Analysts believe that without the banks, there wouldn’t have been a basis for subsidy payment for most of the oil marketers in the first place. They provided the finances and now, sources say, the banks, which industry sources say “are as complicit as the marketers and the regulators” are going to exclude themselves from the probe again.

How the banks get involved

After securing petroleum import licence from the Petroleum Products Pricing and Regulatory Agency (PPPRA), an oil marketer approaches a bank to finance the deal.

The bank “bids for forex (foreign exchange) for you from the central bank on the basis that you obtained a license,” a top official, of a major Nigerian bank, involved in the energy sector said, while explaining the process to our reporter.

The bank also opens a letter of credit (LC) with the offshore oil supplier or its bank, from whom the Nigerian company is buying the petroleum product. The bank then provides evidence of financing to the PPPRA. The evidence will contain the volume of product paid for, volume imported, and so on.

In order to ensure the marketer does not default in payment, and does not divert the products, the bank ensures that both the subsidy sum to be paid by the PPPRA, and the fee to be paid by local purchasers of the imported fuel are paid into the oil marketer’s account domiciled with the bank.

“The truth is the banks cannot claim not to know that there is fraud going on. Sometimes, we (the banks) even partake in it,” a senior banker said.

“There is no way a marketer will divert a product we have paid for without us knowing. Sometimes, we even appoint people to help us monitor the imported product at the tank farms,” he said.

Sources in the oil industry also confirmed what the bank officials said.

“Do you think a bank will use its own money to pay for a product and let one marketer do what he likes with it? They learnt from their earlier mistakes during the banking crisis. Most of what goes on is with their knowledge,” a top oil industry source, who did not want her name mentioned for fear of victimization, stated.

However, it is not only the Access Bank and other commercial banks which should be investigated on the subsidy scam; even the CBN was culpable.

See no evil

The then CBN governor, Sanusi Lamido, and financial regulator, looked away while marketers were colluding with bank officials to dupe the nation, investigations reveal.

In at least one occasion, the PPPRA wrote to the CBN when it suspected that some oil marketers were playing pranks, submitting suspiciously fake bank documents, in probable collusion with the affected banks, in order to claim subsidy payments.

In a letter dated February 1, 2011, received by the CBN on the same day and directed to the director in charge of trade and exchange, the PPPRA told the CBN that it “received documents from the indicated marketers as part of the requirements for subsidy claim.”

“In line with the policy of transparency, the Agency deemed it necessary to request the verification of authenticity of the attached documents from the CBN,” the letter stated; the word, “authenticity”, was in bold fonts. The documents suspected to be fake and sent to the CBN included Form M, Letters of Credit, and Evidence of Bank Finance.

Investigations at both the CBN and the PPPRA revealed that the CBN never responded to the request.

“That was a trying period, particularly for the banks involved. We (the CBN) didn’t want anything that would further erode public confidence in the banks. That is why we didn’t respond to that request. Nobody knew all these (the fuel subsidy scandal) would happen,” a top CBN official said.

Following our email enquiry last Thursday, Ugochukwu Okoroafor, CBN’s director of corporate communications, said (in an email) on Friday that the apex bank would respond to our enquiry this week. Mr. Okoroafor is however yet to respond to our questions on the various roles of the CBN in the 2011 subsidy regime.

Despite the apparent complicity of the banks however, the fate of the mismanaged trillions of naira and the expectations of Nigerians is still being managed by Mr. Aig-Imoukhuede and his other bank colleagues in the Presidential probe panel.

“Anyone expecting any justice from Aig’s panel is deceiving himself. He will never indict himself or his colleagues. With that committee, President Jonathan has dashed the hopes of Nigerians on the fuel subsidy scandal,” a top CBN source stated.

ACCESS BANK MD IN $19m FRAUD
Dirty deals of Aig-Imokuede
…Over Delta State shares
*Launders money for James Ibori
* Lucky Igbinedion frittered 60m shares of Edo State
* Hebert Wigue’s Connection
*EFCC begins secret investigation
BY TINUOLA OLWASEYI, Business Reporter/Abuja
This is certainly a trying time for Aigbogun Aig-Imokuede, the handsome managing director of Access Bank, as his dirty deals with James Ibori, formed Delta State governor

presently on trial in the United Kingdom and Mr. Gohil, the ex-governor’s British resident lawyer serving 7-year jail term for fraud over the controversial Delta State shares is now in the open. Like an orphan, the ‘Ogidigborogbori of Delta’ is now carrying his cross all by himself. But, Aig-Imokuede has been having nightmares since the issue became a public opinion and he is allegedly trying to win the confidence of majority of the shareholders who are loosing sleep over the unethical behaviour of the banking boss.
Position of the law
Going by the statutory provision in Nigerian constitution, anyone who receives stolen items, knowing them to be stolen, is labeled an accomplice and equally as guilty as the committer of the crime. Ibori and Lucky Igbinedion are two formers governors currently facing graft charges; while those who teamed up with them to pilfer and launder state funds walk free.

Nigeria Standard learnt Aig-Imokuede played a prominent role in helping Ibori and creating an accessory in their looting the funds of Delta State through the bogus shares controversy. Regardless of his moral make-belief, the lanky banker is regarded “dirty” in the business community due to his notoriety for aiding corrupt government officials.

How Aig-Imokuede,Wigwe aided James Ibori in converting V-Mobile shares
Investigation by ACCESS BANK MD IN $19m FRAUD
Dirty deals of Aig-Imokuede
…Over Delta State shares
*Launders money for James Ibori
* Lucky Igbinedion frittered 60m shares of Edo State
* Hebert Wigue’s Connection
*EFCC begins secret investigation
BY TINUOLA OLWASEYI, Business Reporter/Abuja
This is certainly a trying time for Aigbogun Aig-Imokuede, the handsome managing director of Access Bank, as his dirty deals with James Ibori, formed Delta State governor

presently on trial in the United Kingdom and Mr. Gohil, the ex-governor’s British resident lawyer serving 7-year jail term for fraud over the controversial Delta State shares is now in the open. Like an orphan, the ‘Ogidigborogbori of Delta’ is now carrying his cross all by himself. But, Aig-Imokuede has been having nightmares since the issue became a public opinion and he is allegedly trying to win the confidence of majority of the shareholders who are loosing sleep over the unethical behaviour of the banking boss.
Position of the law
Going by the statutory provision in Nigerian constitution, anyone who receives stolen items, knowing them to be stolen, is labeled an accomplice and equally as guilty as the committer of the crime. Ibori and Lucky Igbinedion are two formers governors currently facing graft charges; while those who teamed up with them to pilfer and launder state funds walk free.

Nigeria Standard learnt Aig-Imokuede played a prominent role in helping Ibori and creating an accessory in their looting the funds of Delta State through the bogus shares controversy. Regardless of his moral make-belief, the lanky banker is regarded “dirty” in the business community due to his notoriety for aiding corrupt government officials.

How Aig-Imokuede aided James Ibori in converting V-Mobile shares
Investigation by Nigeria Standard reveal that in 2005 Delta State owned 18% of the shares in V- Mobile, whilst Ibori was the Governor and on the board of V- Mobile (through a proxy) where he had fore-knowledge to all the dealings. In June 2005, a sale of the company was considered, and submissions were made by notable telecom firms, such as Vodaphone, Virgin, Celtel and Econet amongst others.

Towards the end of 2005, Ibori decided to convert Delta State’s shares in V-mobile into his personal asset. In order to pull this off, Ibori hired Mr. Gohil, a UK based Indian lawyer, to think up modalities of achieving the rip-off. Mr Gohil then set up a dummy corporation called Africa Development Finance (ADF), designed to charge inflated fees for its services. According to a document obtained by huhuonline.com, ADF bills for services were six times higher that those charges by leading UK solicitors.

Mr. Gohil, who is currently serving a-7 years in a London jail for this crime, said that it was a requirement for Delta State to consult the dummy corporation (ADF), and subsequently charged $19 million as consultation fee.

Aig-Imokuede transfers $19m
Further investigation by Nigeria Standard reveals that the entire proceeds ($19m) was then transferred to Access bank Plc in Nigeria, where Dere Otubu, an Ibori proxy, works as a director.

Sources who did not want their names in print said that the fraudulent rip off was coordinated with Aig-Imokuede`s blessings, who received monetary compensation for allowing them use his bank.

Former Access Bank employees confirmed story
Former employees of Access Bank, who were privy to the dealing, said that as soon as the funds were received at Access bank in Nigeria, Aig-Imokuede gave express passage to Ibori, who used an assortment of company vehicles to launder the cash. Some of the companies used include Brookes Aviation, E F Samuels, Ascot Offshore Nigeria Ltd, Econet and Cran Brasil Nominees Ltd.

Access Bank shares! How Aig-Imokuede assisted Lucky Igbinedion
According to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Lucky Igbinedion converted Access Bank Plc, shares valued at $775, 000 (N120m) for his personal use. Our checks shows that Igbinedion purchased the shares of Access bank Plc, on behalf of Edo state at the rate of two naira (N2) per share, after the transaction, Edo state had sixty million shares of Access Bank shares, which represented five percent of total shares of Access Bank.

As the value of the shares began to appreciate, Igbinedion with the active connivance of top management (Aig-Imokuede and Hebert Wigue) of Access bank, changed ownership of the shares from Edo state government to Igbinedion.

Sources who did not want to be named, reveal that the proceeds from the illegal transfer of ownership of Access bank shares was split three ways between Igbinedion, Aig-Imokuede, Group Managing Director/CEO of Access bank, and Wigue, Group Deputy Managing Director of Access Bank.
Further checks reveal that for the three men, it was a winning situation. For Igbinedion, it meant more money to maintain his life style; while Aig-Imokuede and Wigue ensured their control of the bank was not encroached.

Government brings full weight of the law
Nigeria Standard gathered that since then the government has seized 11 choice properties owned by Igbinedion, while Ibori is facing charges of corruption and money laundering, and is likely get 15 years jail time in London. Standard reveal that in 2005 Delta State owned 18% of the shares in V- Mobile, whilst Ibori was the Governor and on the board of V- Mobile (through a proxy) where he had fore-knowledge to all the dealings. In June 2005, a sale of the company was considered, and submissions were made by notable telecom firms, such as Vodaphone, Virgin, Celtel and Econet amongst others.

Towards the end of 2005, Ibori decided to convert Delta State’s shares in V-mobile into his personal asset. In order to pull this off, Ibori hired Mr. Gohil, a UK based Indian lawyer, to think up modalities of achieving the rip-off. Mr Gohil then set up a dummy corporation called Africa Development Finance (ADF), designed to charge inflated fees for its services. According to a document obtained by huhuonline.com, ADF bills for services were six times higher that those charges by leading UK solicitors.

Mr. Gohil, who is currently serving a-7 years in a London jail for this crime, said that it was a requirement for Delta State to consult the dummy corporation (ADF), and subsequently charged $19 million as consultation fee.

Aig-Imokuede transfers $19m
Further investigation by Nigeria Standard reveals that the entire proceeds ($19m) was then transferred to Access bank Plc in Nigeria, where Dere Otubu, an Ibori proxy, works as a director.

Sources who did not want their names in print said that the fraudulent rip off was coordinated with Aig-Imokuede`s blessings, who received monetary compensation for allowing them use his bank.

Former Access Bank employees confirmed story
Former employees of Access Bank, who were privy to the dealing, said that as soon as the funds were received at Access bank in Nigeria, Aig-Imokuede gave express passage to Ibori, who used an assortment of company vehicles to launder the cash. Some of the companies used include Brookes Aviation, E F Samuels, Ascot Offshore Nigeria Ltd, Econet and Cran Brasil Nominees Ltd.

Access Bank shares! How Aig-Imokuede assisted Lucky Igbinedion
According to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Lucky Igbinedion converted Access Bank Plc, shares valued at $775, 000 (N120m) for his personal use. Our checks shows that Igbinedion purchased the shares of Access bank Plc, on behalf of Edo state at the rate of two naira (N2) per share, after the transaction, Edo state had sixty million shares of Access Bank shares, which represented five percent of total shares of Access Bank.

As the value of the shares began to appreciate, Igbinedion with the active connivance of top management (Aig-Imokuede and Hebert Wigue) of Access bank, changed ownership of the shares from Edo state government to Igbinedion.

Sources who did not want to be named, reveal that the proceeds from the illegal transfer of ownership of Access bank shares was split three ways between Igbinedion, Aig-Imokuede, Group Managing Director/CEO of Access bank, and Wigue, Group Deputy Managing Director of Access Bank.
Further checks reveal that for the three men, it was a winning situation. For Igbinedion, it meant more money to maintain his life style; while Aig-Imokuede and Wigue ensured their control of the bank was not encroached.

Government brings full weight of the law
Globalmonitor gathered that since then the government has seized 11 choice properties owned by Igbinedion, while Ibori is currently serving jail terms in London.