Ibori held UK accounts, his agent was prosecuted for fraud, UK court hears

[bayo4luv]

Ibori held UK accounts, his agent was prosecuted for fraud, UK court hears

Evidence unveiled in the on-going London trial involving James Ibori's associates on Wednesday showed that the former Delta State governor held multiple UK accounts, and one of his agents was prosecuted for conspiracy and fraud in the UK.  Testifying on Wednesday before the Southwark Crown Court presided by Christopher Harding, two officers of the London Metropolitan Police presented evidence obtained during the search of the house of Ibori's agent, while one civilian witness- a fraud analyst with Barclays Bank- gave evidence in respect of Ibori's several bank accounts.  According to Saharareporters, Detective Sergeant Eddington and Detective Constable Clark presented documents obtained when the house of Ibori's agent, George Desar, was searched. Eddington described the manner in which Desar tried to destroy paper evidence confirming his relationship with James Ibori through his sister, Christine Ibori.  During the course of the search, Desar reportedly ripped up some paper documents and threw them into the trash bin. Upon being questioned by the police detectives, he denied any knowledge of the Iboris, responding repeatedly: "the name Ibori meant nothing to me".   Eddington said he retrieved the papers from the bin. When the ripped papers were assembled, they were confirmed to be documents relating to Christine Ibori, with her name clearly printed on them.As the questioning continued, Clark testified that Desar became increasingly evasive and at a point stopped answering the questions of the police officers. The 'silence' prompted the officers to arrest him under caution for alleged conspiracy with Ibori in a bid to defraud a mortgage company.   After more questioning, Desar finally admitted that he, in fact, knew Christine Ibori. He was subsequently taken to the police station where written statements were obtained. At about 3:55p.m (UK time), Julia Caddlington- a fraud analyst with UK Barclays bank- was admitted to the witness box. She confirmed in open court that James Ibori held 6 different UK accounts, under his name. Four of these accounts were (Pound) sterling accounts, whilst the other two were dollars account.  During the cross-examination by both the prosecution and defence lawyers, Caddlinton, who has worked with Barclays for 22 years, confirmed that 'Customer Due Diligence' was followed with regard to Ibori's account. Among others, Ibori's identity as the owner of the account was confirmed, and he was also identified as the one controlling the funds.  The sterling accounts include Account Numbers 00115196 and 69432355, whilst the dollar accounts included Number 48448901. James Ibori was, according to her, registered with the bank as an international customer. As the day's proceedings were closing, the prosecution witness announced a list of 32 witnesses that will be called in the ongoing case. She mentioned, in particular, that one witness, police officer Macdonalds, has extensive documented evidence showing Ibori was not significantly wealthy prior to his election in May 1999.The hearing continues.

Source: latest news, breaking news, business, finance analysis, comments and views from Nigeria :: Businessday

[bayo4luv]