The chairman, CEO, and founder of Air Peace, Allen Onyema, is accused of providing fictitious documents to thwart a federal inquiry, giving rise to charges of obstruction of justice in the US.
The airline’s Chief of Administration and Finance, Ejiroghene Eghagha, and Onyema were already being prosecuted in a case pending in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia on allegations of bank fraud and money laundering.
In a press release released on Friday, October 11, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia declared Onyema’s accusations of obstructing justice.
“In an attempt to halt an investigation into him that led to prior charges of bank fraud and money laundering, Allen Onyema, the Chairman, CEO, and founder of the Nigerian airline Air Peace, has been charged with obstruction of justice in a superseding indictment. A portion of the announcement stated, “Ejiroghene Eghagha, the airline’s Chief of Administration and Finance, was also charged for participation in the obstruction plan, in addition to the prior bank fraud convictions.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, between 2016 and 2018, Onyema and Eghagha reportedly transferred over $20 million into U.S. bank accounts using fictitious export letters of credit.
Investigations revealed that purchase agreements and appraisals were fabricated, notwithstanding the funds’ purported use for Air Peace’s purchase of five Boeing 737 aircraft.
Onyema was the owner of Springfield Aviation, the company that was described as the vendor, although it had no actual connection to aviation.
In addition, the press release said that after the initial accusations of bank fraud and money laundering, Onyema and Eghagha allegedly tried to block the inquiry by telling someone in charge of Springfield Aviation to sign a contract that was signed in the past.
In an attempt to stop the inquiry and unfreeze Onyema’s bank accounts, his attorneys eventually turned this contract over to US officials, which resulted in more accusations of obstruction of justice.
Onyema allegedly tried to sabotage the inquiry after using his airline as a cover for fraud, according to U.S. Attorney Ryan Buchanan. He emphasized that the defendants were held responsible for the obstruction scheme’s exposure thanks to the hard work of federal investigators.
In an unsuccessful attempt to thwart the government’s inquiry into his actions, Onyema and his co-defendant allegedly committed more fraud after utilizing his airline business as a front to defraud the American financial system.
Declared US Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan. “Our federal investigative partners’ diligence exposed the defendants’ purported obstruction scheme, enabling the defendants to be held accountable for their aggravated conduct of seeking to obstruct a federal investigation,” he continued.
The DEA Atlanta Division’s Special Agent in Charge, Robert J. Murphy, emphasized that these instances show the agency’s dedication to finding and prosecuting individuals engaged in fraud and money laundering.
The announcement added that the case is a component of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) operation, which goes after elite criminal groups that could endanger the financial institutions of the United States.
Until their guilt is established, Onyema and Eghagha are presumed innocent; as the trial goes on, the burden of proof rests with the U.S. government to establish the allegations beyond a reasonable doubt.
Background information
On Friday, November 22, 2019, the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Georgia, released a press release stating that Air Peace CEO Allen Ifechukwu Athan Onyema was facing charges of bank fraud and money laundering.
Onyema is accused of utilizing forged paperwork pertaining to airplane purchases to move more than $20 million through U.S. bank accounts. The Chief of Administration at Air Peace, Ejiroghene Eghagha, was also accused of fraud and aggravated identity theft.
Authorities in the United States claimed that Onyema moved over $44.9 million in fraudulent activity between 2010 and 2018 through the use of his airline and charitable organizations.
Following an examination, it was discovered that Onyema had allegedly laundered over $16 million and that the transactional supporting documentation had been forged.
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