Former Delta State Governor James Ibori has suffered a major legal setback after a UK Court of Appeal rejected his attempt to reduce a £101.5m confiscation order linked to his conviction for fraud and money laundering.
The Court of Appeal in London dismissed Ibori’s appeal on Tuesday, upholding the confiscation order issued by Southwark Crown Court in July 2023.
Ibori had sought to reduce the amount by approximately £4.3m, arguing that an inflation-related adjustment applied to funds held in frozen bank accounts was disproportionate.
His legal team had challenged the calculation, contending that the adjustment unfairly increased the amount he was required to surrender despite the funds having been restrained.
However, the three-member appeal panel rejected the argument, ruling that the adjustment was consistent with the law governing the recovery of proceeds of crime.
The decision leaves the confiscation order, valued at £101.5m (approximately $136m), intact.
The appeal had delayed enforcement of the order, but proceedings can now move forward unless Ibori takes the matter to the UK Supreme Court.
Speaking to Reuters after the judgment, Ibori said he was consulting his lawyers over his next legal move. He also expressed frustration over the prolonged legal battle, remarking: “Give me a break.”
Background
Ibori governed Delta State, one of Nigeria’s major oil-producing states, between 1999 and 2007.
He was convicted in the UK in 2012 after pleading guilty to 10 counts of fraud and money laundering involving tens of millions of dollars in public funds channelled through British banks and properties.
He was sentenced to 13 years in prison but was released in late 2016 after serving approximately half of his sentence, taking into account time spent in detention.
The former governor returned to Nigeria in early 2017.
The confiscation proceedings followed investigations by Nigerian and British anti-corruption authorities into his financial dealings.
In July 2023, Southwark Crown Court ordered him to pay £101.5m immediately or face an eight-year default prison sentence.
The latest ruling marks another significant development in one of Britain’s high-profile corruption cases involving a former Nigerian public official.
