IBORI’S MULTI-MILLION DOLLAR REAL ESTATE PROPERTIES EXPOSED

Chief James Onanefe Ibori’s real estate holdings are spread all over the UK. Investigations at the UK land registry revealed that he owns 7 Westover Hill, London HA3 0LZ with title number MX 207021. Saharareporters gathered that the property was fully paid for as of 2001. The amount paid for the property was £2.3 million, but the property’s current value is £4 million. The property is registered to Haleway Properties Limited, a company registered in Gibraltar by a company formation known as BC Centrum at 788 Finchley Road, London. James Ibori and his wife, Theresa Ibori, are the beneficial owners of Haleway Properties.

Ibori also owns the property located at Flat 23, 20 Abbey Road, London NW8 9BJ, with title number NGL 699019. Registered in the name of James Ibori, the property was purchased in 1999 with an initial deposit of £157,000. On April 12, 2000, almost one year into his tenure as governor, Ibori made a further payment of £90,000. A final payment of £70,081 was made on July 25, 2000. The property is now approximately worth £750,000.

On July 29 2005 another of Ibori’s several front companies known as Telaton Quays Limited acquired a property at 42 Great Ground, Shaftbury, Dorset SP7 8FF. The property is registered at the UK land registry under title number DT 326978; the property was purchased for £298,995 and is currently valued at £350,000. The contract was handled by Mr. Bhadresh Gohil of Arlington Sharmas Solicitors.

Saharareporters has discovered that the payment for the property was made by James Ibori's mistress, Udo Amaka Okoronkwo through a cheque in the sum of £311,000 dated July 20, 2005. A copy of the conveyance obtained by Saharareporters points to Ibori and his wife, Theresa, as having purchased the property through Telaton Quays Limited. A correspondence from Ibori to Bhadresh Gohil indicated that the former governor gave specific instructions directly to Mr. Gohil to complete the purchase.

Another property linked to Ibori includes 76 Woodhill Crescent, Kenton, Harrow Middlesex HA3 0LZ, where Ibie Ibori, his sister and principal accomplice with regards to money laundering activities, lives. The house is now worth £475,000. There is also the property at 71 Mayflower Lodge, Regents Park Road, London, N3 3HX where James Ibori's mistress Udo Amaka Okoronkwo resides with the child she had by the former governor. The mortgage is paid to Abbey National Building Society through an HSBC current account number 21228420.

James and Theresa Ibori own a properties company in London by the name Boyd Properties Limited that is managed by BC Centrum on 788 Finchley Road in London. On March 23, 2004, Ibori appointed Udo Amaka Okoronkwo to act on Boyd Properties Limited with the authority to sign documents relating to sales and purchases of assets by the company. In one instance Boyd Properties paid £388,077 to Peter Brown Solicitors in the purchase of 36 Hunter Lodge, Calton Gate, Maida Vale, London W9 3TQ through an HSBC account number 91310801 located at Buckingham Palace Road, Belgravia. Boyd Properties Limited is believed to own several assets in London that are yet to be discovered by UK police investigators.

Adebimpe Pogoson, who was hired by Ibori under the name of “Miss Bimpe Faloye” in 1997 while he was the publisher of Diet newspaper (now defunct), is a bit player in Ibori’s real estate deals.

In London, Bimpe retained her address at 58 Uphill Drive, London, NW9 0BX where she paid council tax until June 30 2005. After the EFCC began to track her for involvement in money laundering, she fled Nigeria and returned to London. Once in England, she moved into Flat 39 Barons Court that is owned by Ibie Ibori, according to UK Land registry records.

Ibori’s real estate holdings in Nigeria are also legendary. He owns Number 21 Idejo Street off Adeola Odeku. The massive duplex was bought under the name of his sister, Ibie Ibori. Ibori also owns 21 Probyn Road off Bourdillon in Ikoyi. The property, with twin duplex swimming pools, barbecue resort gardens and lawn tennis court, was reportedly bought from G Cappa Construction Company whose MD used to reside there. Ibori also owns 18A Adeyemi Lawson Road off Macpherson Avenue Ikoyi and 10A, B&C Turnbull Road Ikoyi.

On December 9, 2003, Ms. Adebimpe Pogoson issued a twenty million naira postdated cheque to Diya Fatimilehin and Co. for part payment of Plot 5 Block 4 Layi Ajayi Bembe Street off Turnbull Road, Ikoyi. The cheque was drawn on Assurance Bank.

Ibori is also suspected to own the property housing the Corporate Affairs Commission in Asokoro, Abuja.

In the State of Florida, Ibori is heavily invested in the real estate sector through HFA Development Group with account 3200056255 ABA NO 266086554 at CITI Bank, 1600 Coral Way Miami, Florida 33145. Another company is Primi LCC with offices in the United Kingdom and Nigeria with A/C NO 003677025981 ABA NO 063100277 at the Bank of America, 2308 Pouce De Leon Boulevard, Coral Gables, Miami, Florida 33134.

He is also the owner of Bond Technologies. On December 8, 2003, the company received a transfer $74,000.00 from Ibori's KOLN account number 109091012 at Gulf Bank in Nigeria. Bond Technologies’ account number is 61006602 ABA Routing number 063108680 with the Bank of Tampa, 13868 North Dale Mabry, Tampa, Florida FL33618.

Ibori’s Florida projects were mostly coordinated by Olusegun Fowora who lives in Aventura, Miami, Florida in a $750,000 mansion with a view of the ocean.

Saharareporters contacted Segun Fowora who initially feigned ignorance of James Ibori and hung up the phone on us. A few days later, he called our reporters back and admitted that he was friends with James Ibori. He also said he is a contractor with the Delta State government handling "medium size" projects. Though he admitted knowing about HFA Development Company because he had done business with the company before, he denied any involvement in Ibori’s money laundering activities.  

James Ibori is also believed to own properties in Texas, Los Angeles, and New York City. A source told Saharareporters that the FBI has begun investigations into his economic activities just as he returned to Nigeria last week.