Nigerian police spokesman Frank Mba sent a statement to CNN confirming that the FBI has charged her with acting police superintendent Abba Kyari and that an internal investigation has been ordered.
“Upon receipt of allegations and indictments from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) against a Nigerian police officer, DCP Abba Kyari, IGP Police Inspector General Usman Alkali Baba … review the allegations,” the statement said.
Court documents cited by the Justice Department claim that Abbas, who resigned on Jan.
Abbas also admitted his involvement in a conspiracy to defraud a Qatari businessman for more than $ 1 million, the U.S. Department of Justice said in a statement Wednesday.
The alleged fraud almost collapsed after one of the group members, Kelly Chibuzo Vincent, tried to give her Qatari victim a clue about the million dollar fraud, the Justice Department said in the court files.
Abbas is charged with imprisoning Vincent in Nigeria by Kyari “who allegedly arranged the arrest and detention of Vincent at Abbas’s behest and sent photos of Vincent to Abbas after his arrest,” the court documents read.
Kyari, 46, is a highly decorated officer who was awarded a Presidential Medal for Courage by Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari. The FBI claims he sent Abbas bank details for an account that he could use to pay for his consent to Vincent’s arrest.
They managed to defraud the unnamed businessman of $ 1.1 million, and some of the stolen money was used to “buy a Richard Mille RM11-03 watch that was hand-delivered to Abbas in Dubai and subsequently appeared on Hushpuppi’s social media posts, ”prosecutors said.
Abbas also used part of the proceeds to allegedly “acquire citizenship of St. Christopher and Nevis and a passport for Abbas obtained through the creation of a false marriage certificate and subsequent bribery of a government official in St. Kitts,” is called it in official documents.
Los Angeles-based attorney Louis Shapiro, who represents Abbas, told CNN Thursday that he had not advised Hushpuppi to plead guilty. Shapiro declined to comment on the case, adding, “I don’t comment on cases I’m working on.”
Policeman denies
Kyari denied the claims in a Facebook post Thursday, saying Vincent’s arrest came on Abbas’ “911 call” after threats to his family.
“Abbas, whom we later met when Hushpuppi called our office about 2 years ago that someone in Nigeria was seriously threatening to kill his family here in Nigeria and he sent the person’s phone number pleading that we take action before that Person attacks their family. ”Kyari said on social media.
“Nobody asked for money from Abbas Hushpuppi and nobody took money from him. We responded to an 911 call he made about threatening his family and released the suspect when we found out that the suspect was not in danger of death. That’s the real story. Vincent is alive, he can be contacted, ”he added.
Attempts to reach Vincent were unsuccessful.
Abbas was a lavish financier who claimed to be a real estate developer and was famous for throwing wads of cash and flaunting his Rolls Royces, luxury watches, and designer clothes on Instagram, where he has amassed more than two million followers in the United Arab Emirates June last year after local police raided his home in Dubai.
Abbas has been turned over to FBI agents to be tried in the United States for money laundering through cybercrime.
According to Dubai Police, nearly $ 41 million in cash, 13 luxury cars valued at around $ 6.8 million, and phone and computer evidence with more than 100,000 fraud files and the addresses of nearly two million were found in the raid possible victims found.
