The Chief Executive Officer of Air Peace, Allen Onyema, has been hit with fresh charges by U.S. authorities for allegedly obstructing justice in an ongoing investigation related to money laundering. In a superseding indictment, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia accused Onyema and the airline’s Chief of Administration and Finance, Ejiroghene Eghagha, of submitting false documents to impede a federal probe.
Onyema and Eghagha have been under investigation since 2019, facing allegations of laundering over $20 million. The funds were allegedly funneled from Nigeria through U.S. bank accounts using fraudulent documents, purportedly for the purchase of airplanes. The U.S. Department of Justice claims that Onyema used his airline as a front for the scheme.
Eghagha also faces charges of aggravated identity theft connected to the same fraudulent activities.
In a statement on Friday, U.S. Attorney Ryan Buchanan in Atlanta detailed the new charges, accusing the two of attempting to disrupt the investigation through additional fraudulent acts. “Onyema, using his airline company as a cover, allegedly defrauded the U.S. banking system and, along with his co-defendant, later committed further crimes in an unsuccessful attempt to derail the government’s probe,” Buchanan said.
According to the indictment, from May 2016, Onyema and Eghagha used export letters of credit to transfer over $20 million into accounts in Atlanta controlled by Onyema. The funds were said to be for the purchase of five Boeing 737 aircraft for Air Peace, but the supporting documents, including purchase agreements and appraisals, were allegedly falsified.
Investigators also revealed that the planes were to be acquired from Springfield Aviation Company LLC, a Georgia-based entity owned by Onyema. However, the company never owned the aircraft, and its management had no aviation industry connections.
The new charges escalate the legal battle against Onyema and his associate, as U.S. authorities continue to pursue the case.
