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OFAC sanctions individuals for raising funds supporting Nigerian terrorist group
On March 25, the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced sanctions pursuant to Executive Order 13224, as amended, against six individuals connected to the Nigerian terrorist group Boko Haram. According to OFAC, the six individuals “were found guilty of establishing a Boko Haram cell in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to raise funds for and provide material assistance to Boko Haram insurgents in Nigeria.” The sanctions follow “arrests, prosecutions, and designations in the UAE in September 2021, demonstrating the commitment of the Emirati government to using judicial measures and targeted financial sanctions to disrupt the flow of funds to these networks.” Under Secretary of the Treasury Brian Nelson stated that the U.S. is joining the UAE in targeting terrorist financing networks to ensure the Boko Haram network is unable to further move funds through the international financial system. As a result of the sanctions, all property and interests in property belonging to the sanctioned individuals in the U.S. or in the possession or control of U.S. persons, and “any entities that are owned, directly or indirectly, 50 percent or more” by the targeted individuals are blocked and must be reported to OFAC. Additionally, U.S. persons are prohibited from engaging in any dealings involving the property or interests in property of blocked or designated persons, unless exempt or authorized by a general or specific OFAC license.
OFAC’s announcement further warned that “engaging in certain transactions with the individuals designated today entails risk of secondary sanctions” and that any foreign financial institution that knowingly facilitates significant transactions or provides significant financial services on behalf of a Specially Designated Global Terrorist may be subject to U.S. correspondent account or payable-through account sanctions.
OFAC sanctions Nigerian nationals involved in business email compromise and romance fraud scheme
On June 16, the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced a coordinated action with the DOJ against six Nigerian nationals who allegedly conducted a business email compromise (BEC) scheme and engaged in romance fraud to steal more than $6 million from U.S. businesses and individuals. The designated individuals’ actions included, among other things, allegedly impersonating businesses executives to request and receive wire transfers from legitimate business accounts, and using manipulative tactics to gain access to usernames, passwords, and bank accounts. OFAC designated the individuals pursuant to Executive Order 13694, which “targets malicious cyber-enabled activities, including those related to the significant misappropriation of funds or economic resources for private financial gain.” As a result, all property and interests in property belonging to the designated individuals subject to U.S. jurisdiction are blocked, and “U.S. persons generally are prohibited from dealing with them.”
OFAC also provided additional information regarding BEC scams and romance fraud and referred to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network’s July 2019 advisory, which addresses efforts designed to restrict and impede BEC scammers and other illicit actors who profit from email compromise fraud schemes (covered by InfoBytes here).
DOJ Files Suit to Seize $144 Million in Laundered Nigerian Oil Bribes
The U.S. Department of Justice announced Friday, July 14, that prosecutors filed a civil complaint seeking to seize $144 million in assets that were allegedly the proceeds of corruption in Nigeria and were laundered in and through the U.S. According to the complaint, from 2011 to 2015, two Nigerian businessmen bribed Nigeria’s former Minister for Petroleum Resources, who oversaw Nigeria’s state-owned oil company. In return, the former Minister steered lucrative oil contracts to companies owned by the businessmen. The proceeds were then allegedly used to purchase assets subject to seizure and forfeiture, including a $50 million New York City condominium and an $80 million yacht.
“The United States is not a safe haven for the proceeds of corruption,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Blanco. “The complaint announced today demonstrates the Department’s commitment to working with our law enforcement partners around the globe to trace and recover the proceeds of corruption, no matter the source. Corrupt foreign officials and business executives should make no mistake: if illicit funds are within the reach of the United States, we will seek to forfeit them and to return them to the victims from whom they were stolen.”
The suit was part of the Kleptocracy Asset Recovery Initiative.