BEVERLY HILLS, February 03, (THEWILL) – James Ibori, former Governor of Delta state, has appeared before a UK court for his confiscation trial.
The trial, presided over by David Tomlinson, a justice at Southwark Crown court is to determine if his assets, worth about £100 million, should be seized after serving his jail term.
THEWILL recalls that Ibori, governor of Delta between 1999 and 2007, was sentenced to 13-year jail term in the UK where he was found guilty of money laundering.
He regained freedom in December, after serving 6 1/2 years.
However, Amber Rudd, the home secretary, declared that he would only be deported after handing over “proceeds of crime” which Ibori’s legal team faulted.
Ibori’s lawyers led by Richard Murkin, sought to stop the UK government from further detaining him any further saying the government was abusing its powers by seeking to detain Ibori on the premise that his assets confiscation case remained undecided.
