A U.S. federal court has renewed an arrest warrant for Allen Onyema, Chairman and CEO of Nigerian airline Air Peace, over a long-standing $20 million fraud case. According to reports from Premium Times, the federal district court in Northern Georgia, Atlanta, reissued the warrant on October 9, following the addition of obstruction of justice charges against Onyema and Air Peace’s Chief of Administration and Finance, Ejiroghene Eghagha.
Onyema and Eghagha now face 38 counts, including conspiracy, money laundering, bank fraud, credit application fraud, identity theft, and obstruction of justice. The superseding indictment, filed on October 8, alleges that Onyema attempted to submit false documents to impede the investigation.
The legal issues stem from allegations dating back to 2019, when Onyema was accused of moving suspicious funds from Nigeria to U.S. bank accounts between 2017 and 2018. Prosecutors claim Onyema disguised these transfers as aircraft purchases, using his U.S.-based firm, Springfield Aviation LLC, as a conduit for the funds. The alleged scheme involved applying for export letters of credit from Nigerian banks, with the funds then directed to Springfield Aviation’s Atlanta accounts for purported aircraft acquisitions. However, investigators allege that Springfield Aviation never owned the aircraft referenced in the transactions.
In 2019, U.S. authorities first issued an arrest warrant for Onyema and Eghagha, intending to allow Canadian law enforcement to take them into custody if encountered in Canada. Additionally, 27 individual counts of money laundering were brought against Onyema, representing each of the transactions he allegedly conducted in 2017 from Springfield Aviation’s Wells Fargo account to his personal savings account.
Air Peace, however, remains resolute in defending Onyema, emphasizing that the allegations remain unproven. “Our legal team is fully engaged…to ensure that justice prevails,” the airline stated, stressing that both Onyema and Eghagha have cooperated with authorities throughout the legal process. The company assured its customers that these legal proceedings will not impact Air Peace’s operations or safety standards.
The airline reaffirmed its commitment to delivering reliable service despite the ongoing case, with Air Peace staff remaining dedicated to maintaining operational stability and customer satisfaction.
