James Ibori $15 Million Bribe Money Has Been Awarded To FG

The ownership of the $15 miliion that ex-Delta state governor James Ibori allegedly used as a bribe has been awarded to the Federal Government.

The Federal High Court sitting in Abuja ruled that the Delta state government failed to prove beyond reasonable doubt that the sum belongs to it.

The Delta state government claimed ownership of the money allegedly given by Mr. Ibori, as bribe to stave-off arrest by former chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Mallam Nuhu Ribadu.

The EFCC had in July 2012 approached the court through an ex- parte application, requesting for an order forfeiting the Ibori bribe which had been lying in the vaults of the Central Bank of Nigeria for more than five years to the Federal Government as unclaimed proceed of crime.

The EFCC had urged the court to dismiss the claim by the Delta State government to the alleged bribe and order the final forfeiture of the sum to the Federal Government in line with the provisions of Section 17 of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Related Offences Act, 2006.