ST JOHN’S Antigua, October 2024 – In a twist that could send shockwaves through Caribbean airspace, the newly launched regional carrier LIAT 2020 finds itself in the eye of a storm.
The airline’s majority stakeholder, Allen Onyema, CEO of Nigerian airline Air Peace, faces an expanding array of charges from the United States government, casting a long shadow over the fledgling carrier’s future.
Onyema, who holds a 70% stake in LIAT 2020, has been evading trial in an American court for five years. Now, the U.S. government has ratcheted up the pressure, adding fresh allegations to the existing $20 million bank fraud case. On October 8, 2024, a superseding indictment was filed, introducing charges of obstruction of justice and conspiracy to obstruct justice against the embattled Nigerian businessman.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia didn’t mince words in its Friday statement: “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 legal noose tightens not just around Onyema but also ensnares Ejiroghene Eghagha, Air Peace’s Chief of Administration and Finance. Eghagha stands accused of participating in both the obstruction scheme and the earlier bank fraud counts. This widening net of allegations threatens to ground Air Peace’s Caribbean ambitions before they truly take flight.
The timing couldn’t be more precarious for LIAT 2020. The airline, rising from the ashes of its predecessor LIAT 1974, had only recently spread its wings across the Caribbean archipelago. With newly launched routes to Dominica, St. Kitts, and Grenada, LIAT 2020 seemed poised to breathe new life into regional connectivity. Prime Minister Gaston Browne of Antigua and Barbuda, the driving force behind the airline’s resurrection, had hailed the partnership with Air Peace as a “significant milestone in regional aviation.”
However, as legal storm clouds gather over Onyema, the future of this Caribbean air bridge hangs in the balance. The U.S. authorities’ dogged pursuit of the Nigerian businessman raises questions about the due diligence conducted in forging this international partnership. It also casts a spotlight on the challenges facing small island nations in their quest to secure reliable air links – a critical lifeline for tourism-dependent economies.
The allegations against Onyema read like a high-flying financial thriller. U.S. prosecutors claim the Air Peace CEO orchestrated a complex scheme, moving suspicious funds from Nigeria to American bank accounts between 2017 and 2018. The money, allegedly disguised as aircraft purchase funds, flowed through a labyrinth of transactions involving Onyema’s Atlanta-based firm, Springfield Aviation LLC.
“The diligence of our federal investigative partners revealed the defendants’ alleged obstruction scheme, making it possible for the defendants to be held accountable for their aggravated conduct of attempting to impede a federal investigation,” stated U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan, highlighting the gravity of the situation.
As Onyema and Eghagha continue to evade U.S. authorities, the case has already claimed its first conviction. Ebony Mayfield, an American woman described as a former “bartender, restaurant waitress, and nightclub dancer,” was sentenced to three years’ probation in September 2022 for her role in facilitating the alleged fraud. Mayfield’s light sentence, attributed to her early guilty plea and cooperation, starkly contrasts the mounting charges against the Nigerian businessmen.
evading trial in an American court for the pass 5 years …………….and none of our CARICOM leaders knew ANYTHING about that??????
NOT EVEN a fake wannabe WORLD BOSSSSSSSS??????????
Remember Allison Madueke people?
Birds of a feather????!!!!!!!!!!!!