Detectives at the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission have grilled Allen Onyema, the chairman of Air Peace airline over his indictment in a $44.9 fraud by the US government.
A source in the antigraft agency said Onyema was interrogated on Wednesday November 27th and has been placed on administrative bail.
Source said “Our team of detectives on Wednesday interacted with Onyema in our Lagos office on the wire deals, especially on issues involving money laundering. The questioning was part of our ongoing collaboration with the FBI and other agencies in line with the Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty (MLAT) between Nigeria and the United States.We decided to release Onyema on administrative bail in deference to his constitutional right of innocence until proven guilty. But Onyema is on surveillance by the EFCC pending the conclusion of the ongoing investigation. There are vital Nigerian components of the indictment and demands of the US Government. For instance, the US is seeking the forfeiture of over $13 million left in some accounts linked with the suspect in the United States and Canada. The funds are $4,017,852.51 in JP Morgan Chase Bank in the US and $4,593,842.05 and $5,634,842.04 in the Bank of Montreal, Canada. We cannot rule out some of the money in some accounts in Nigeria. And our investigation may reveal the identities of other accomplices. Also, two Nigerian banks have been mentioned in the wire deals, especially transactions on purchase of aircraft. If there are assets to be seized in Nigeria, we have to collaborate with the US Government on the forfeiture process. The suspect has gone underground. We may have no choice but to watch-list the ex-Special Adviser. We will eventually place him on INTERPOL red alert. Preliminary findings revealed a nexus between Amnesty Office and the activities of Onyema’s firms/groups/ NGOs as applicable. These groups include the Foundation for Ethnic Harmony, International Centre for Non-Violence and Peace Development, All-Time Peace Media Communications Limited and Every Child Limited. Our detectives discovered that the Foundation for Ethnic Harmony in Nigeria (FEHN) handled the training and transformation of some former Niger Delta militants for both the Amnesty Programme Office and the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC).”