US slams Air Peace boss, Onyema, with new charges over money laundering

Following alleged obstruction of justice in an ongoing money laundering probe, the United States on Sunday slammed the Chief Executive Officer of Air Peace, Allen Onyema, with new charges.

In a superseding indictment, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia accused Onyema and Air Peace’s Chief of Administration and Finance, Ejiroghene Eghagha, of submitting false documents in a bid to thwart a federal investigation into their activities.

Both Onyema and Eghagha have been under scrutiny since 2019 for alleged money laundering.

The Air Peace CEO is accused of moving over $20 million from Nigeria through U.S. bank accounts using fraudulent documents under the guise of purchasing airplanes.

Eghagha is also facing charges of aggravated identity theft in connection with the scheme.

U.S. Attorney in Atlanta, Georgia, Ryan Buchanan, issued a statement on Friday detailing the fresh charges.

According to Buchanan, the two defendants allegedly attempted to obstruct justice by committing additional fraudulent acts aimed at disrupting the investigation.

“Onyema, using his airline company as a cover, allegedly defrauded the U.S. banking system and later, along with his co-defendant, committed further crimes in a failed attempt to derail the government’s probe into his conduct.

“The diligence of our federal investigative partners exposed the defendants’ alleged obstruction scheme, ensuring that they can now be held accountable for their aggravated conduct,” he said.

The U.S. Attorney’s office revealed that from May 2016, Onyema and Eghagha allegedly employed a series of export letters of credit to cause banks to transfer over $20 million into Atlanta-based accounts controlled by Onyema.

These funds were purportedly for the purchase of five Boeing 737 passenger planes for Air Peace.

The documents presented to support these transactions, including purchase agreements, bills of sale, and appraisals, were allegedly fake.

Investigations uncovered that the planes were to be acquired from Springfield Aviation Company LLC, a Georgia-registered business owned by Onyema.

However, Springfield Aviation never owned the aircraft, and the company was managed by a person with no ties to the aviation industry.