…Air Peace Confident in Onyema’s Exoneration
Allen Onyema, the Chairman and CEO of Air Peace, Nigeria’s major airline, and Ejiroghene Eghagha, the airline’s Chief Administration and Finance Officer, are facing charges in the United States for alleged money laundering and obstruction of justice.
The charges stem from a federal investigation launched in 2019. US authorities accuse Onyema of moving over $20 million from Nigeria to US bank accounts through a scheme involving “false documents” used to purchase airplanes. Eghagha is also accused of involvement in the scheme and of committing aggravated identity theft.
According to US Attorney Ryan Buchanan of the Northern District of Georgia, “After allegedly using his airline company as a cover to commit fraud on the United States’ banking system, Onyema, along with his co-defendant, allegedly committed additional crimes of fraud in a failed attempt to derail the government’s investigation of his conduct.”
The charges allege that Onyema and Eghagha used export letters of credit to transfer more than $20 million into Atlanta-based accounts under the pretext of purchasing Boeing 737 aircraft. These letters were backed by documents purportedly from Springfield Aviation Company LLC, a Georgia-based firm.
However, Buchanan noted, “The supporting documents were allegedly fake,” with the company having no legitimate aviation connection and being secretly owned by Onyema.
Despite the indictment, Onyema has denied the allegations, maintaining his innocence.
Air Peace has also released a statement calling the charges against their CEO and Eghagha “mere allegations.”
The airline claims they are confident “justice will prevail” and that their legal team is working to ensure a fair outcome.
“Our legal team is fully engaged, and we are confident that our CEO and co-defendant will be exonerated,” the statement read, noting that its operations would remain unaffected.
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