Abacha Family Stalls Money Laundering Investigation Yet Again

by Robert Lee, Tax-News.com, London

05 October 2001

Six months after the the UK's Financial Services Authority found that 23 London banks had handled £1.3 billion in assets embezzled from Nigeria during the rule of the late dictator, General Sani Abacha, proceedings have taken on a strange sense of deja vu, as the Abacha family requests yet another judicial review into High Court decisions.

Earlier this week, the High Court ordered the London branches of many of the world's leading banks, including such top names as Deutsche Bank, Credit Suisse First Boston, HSBC, Barclays, Merril Lynch International Bank, and Goldman Sachs, to freeze accounts linked to General Abacha, his family, and associates.

In the wake of the revelations, the majority of the banks named remained closed-lipped, stating only that they already adhered to the highest anti-money laundering procedures. Only US bank Goldman Sachs has categorically denied the allegations, stating that its private banking arm has: 'no existing or past relationship with the Abacha family and consequently has asked to be removed from this action.'

The naming of the UK based banks is something of an embarrassment at a time when the government is desperate to improve the country's image in terms of the movement of terrorist funds, and this case is seen by some as a test of their commitment to tighten money laundering law.

The QC representing Mohammed Abacha and the General's former partner Abubakar Baguda, Clare Montgomery, admitted that now was 'probably not the best moment' to be bringing an action attacking mutual assistance moves, but accused the UK government of adopting unfair procedures, and denying the two men access to crucial documents.

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