British ex-convict wanted for alleged $8.8m fraud in Nigeria

Statement sent out to the press. Read below...

Plans are underway for the extradition of a British citizen, Deepak Khilnani back to Nigeria for prosecution on financial crimes against a Nigerian Company in which he is a director. Mr Khilnani, who is a chartered accountant and an ex-convict of the British Crown Court at Blackfriars, United Kingdom (UK) is wanted in Nigeria in connection with US$8, 776, 862 fraud charge. The Crown Court conviction certificate dated 13th November 1998, which is in possession of the publisher reads: continue...

“DEEPAK KHILNANI was upon his own confession convicted upon indictment of TRADING WITH INTENT TO DEFRAUD CREDITORS, FALSE ACCOUNTING AND MAKING FALSE STATEMENT TO AUDITOR”.

Mr Khilnani, who is of Indian descent was then sentenced to 18 months imprisonment by the British court in 1998 and was also disqualified under section 2 of the UK Company Directors Disqualification Act 1986 and ordered to pay GBP15, 000.00 prosecution costs. Investigation revealed that about nine years after his conviction in the UK, Mr Khilnani alongside Sushil Chandra, allegedly scammed some Nigerian businesses.

Trouble started in 2013 after the local partners petitioned the Inspector General of Police (IGP) accusing the duo of financial crimes. According to the petition, the complainants had in 2008 opened Letter of Credit in favour of Khilnani’s firm, Gentec Energy Plc. UK, for the purchase of equipment for the local partnership. The petition led to Mr Khilnani’s arrest and interrogation by the police, but he was immediately granted bail with his lawyer, Chris Okunowo, standing as his surety, while investigation into the alleged crime lasted for about a year.

Upon completion of investigation, a six count criminal charge was subsequently filed by the police under sections 323(1), 285(8), 321(1) and 312 of the Criminal Laws of Lagos, 2011. But on 4th July 2014, the day Mr Khilnani was to be produced before a Senior Magistrate at the Igbosere Magistrates’ Court, the police prosecutor, Inspector Stephen Molo, informed the Presiding Magistrate that Mr Khilnani reportedly jumped administrative bail granted by the police and fled to the UK.

Efforts to bring Mr Khilnani to face his trial have been unsuccessful, however, the Lagos State Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice took over the case from the police and directed the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) to have further conduct of the proceedings. Investigations by the publisher revealed that in a letter addressed to the Assistant Inspector-General of Police, Zone 2 Command Headquarters, Onikan, Lagos, the DPP wrote that:

“After a careful consideration of the facts contained in the duplicate case file, this Office is of the opinion that the available facts establish a prima facie case of Conspiracy to Commit a Felony, Cheating, Stealing and Making False Statements contrary to Sectionns 422, 421, 390 (7) and 436(a) respectively of the Criminal Code Law, cap. C. 17, Vol. 2, laws of Lagos State, 2003 against the Suspects; Deepak Khilnani and Suchil Chandra.” The publisher also learnt from investigation conducted at the High Court of Lagos State that in mid-May 2015, the Lagos Attorney General filed criminal charges against the Mr Khilnani at the Ikeja Judicial Division of the High Court of Lagos State in Charge No./ID/1544/15 – The State of Lagos v. Deepak Khilnani & Sushil Chandra. However, with the foreigners now outside Nigeria, we hope that the law enforcement agencies and institutions in Nigeria, including the Interpol will collaborate with their counterparts abroad to have the British national and his co-defendant extradited to Nigeria to face prosecution.

Recently, four Nigerians were executed in Indonesia for drug trafficking. The Federal Government of Nigeria under the leadership of President Jonathan only condemn the act – nothing more! There are several Nigerians languishing in jails around the world and particularly in the UK; and very recently , on Monday, 4th May 2015, Justice E. S Chukwu of the Federal High Court sitting in Maitama, Abuja, ordered the extradition of Emmanuel Okoyomon, a former managing director of the Nigerian Security Printing and Minting Company [NSPM] to the UK to face charges of corruption and money laundering.

The collaboration between Nigeria and the UK in fighting crime and management of offenders is pivotal. Earlier in May 2015, the UK repatriated three Nigerians in UK prisons under the prisoners exchange agreement signed by the two countries.

There are indications that more prisoners will be transferred under this agreement. Therefore, in view of the collaboration and bilateral extradition policy between the two countries, we hope that proper standards will be applied by the authorities in Nigeria and UK in the extradition and prosecution of Mr Khilnani and his co-defendant for economic crimes committed in this country against our own people.

Several FIFA officials arrested on corruption charges; Swiss prosecutors open criminal proceedings into World Cups

Authorities in Zurich on Wednesday arrested several high-ranking FIFA officials on racketeering and corruption charges and will most likely extradite them to the US, The New York Times reported.

In an extensive statement, the US Department of Justice accused the officials of a "24-year scheme to enrich themselves through the corruption of international soccer."

The DOJ's indictment includes 14 defendants with racketeering, wire fraud, money-laundering conspiracies, and other offenses. 

Swiss prosecutors also announced on Wednesday that they had opened criminal proceedings into the two next World Cups — the 2018 World Cup in Russia and the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. Both tournaments will still take place as planned, officials said Wednesday in a news conference.

The Swiss attorney general has seized documents related to the case, according to a statement. The documents will be used in criminal proceedings in Switzerland and abroad.

The Swiss investigation is independent from the one by the US attorney's office that resulted in the arrest of the FIFA officials in Zurich. In the Swiss case, FIFA is considered the injured party, FIFA spokesman Walter de Gregorio said at a news conference.

"The timing may not be obviously the best but definitely FIFA welcomes this process and cooperates fully with the attorney general of Switzerland and the federal office of justice," Gregorio said. "In this case, FIFA is the damaged party. This leads to the fact that there were no searches within the offices of FIFA, the people of the federal attorney are here, we cooperate with them, we provide all the information requested by them, and this is for our own interest."

Gregorio noted that the president of FIFA, Sepp Blatter, was not involved in the Swiss procedure.

The Times, citing anonymous law enforcement officials, said the US federal charges spanned two decades of misconduct in soccer's world governing body. Officials told The Times that the US investigation was ongoing and that Blatter had not been cleared of wrongdoing. He was not one of those arrested Wednesday.

Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images

FIFA officials are in Zurich for the congress where Blatter on Friday will face a challenge from Jordan's Prince Ali Bin Al Hussein in a presidential election for the organization. The election will go forward as planned, FIFA officials said in a news conference.

According to a statement released early Wednesday from the Federal Office of Justice in Switzerland, the US Attorney's Office for the Eastern District in New York is investigating several officials "on suspicion of the acceptance of bribes and kick-backs between the early 1990s and the present day."

That investigation involves schemes to pay FIFA officials and "other functionaries of FIFA sub-organizations more than $100 million."

The FOJ says that, in return, those various individuals and entities at the center of the investigation received "media, marketing, and sponsorship rights in connection with soccer tournaments in Latin America." The statement continues, saying "these crimes were agreed and prepared in the US, and payments were carried out via US banks."

American Chuck Blazer, a former top-ranking FIFA executive, was reportedly an informant for the FBI in the investigation, The New York Daily News reported in November.

Thomson ReutersThe FIFA headquarters in Zurich.

The Times reports that these FIFA executives were charged: Jeffrey Webb, Eugenio Figueredo, Jack Warner, Eduardo Li, Julio Rocha, Costas Takkas, Rafael Esquivel, José Maria Marin, and Nicolás Leoz. Sports marketing executives Alejandro Burzaco, Aaron Davidson, Hugo Jinkis, and Mariano Jinkis are also expected to be charged, along with José Margulies, who authorities say was an intermediary who facilitated illegal payments.

Times reporters Sam Borden and Michael Schmidt are in Zurich covering the arrests:

Questioning of detainees

The Zurich Cantonal Police will question the detainees today on behalf of the FOJ regarding the US request for their arrest.

A simplified procedure will apply for wanted persons who agree to their immediate extradition.

The FOJ can immediately approve their extradition to the US and order its execution. However, if a wanted person opposes their extradition, the FOJ will invite the US to submit a formal extradition request within the deadline of 40 days specified in the bilateral extradition treaty.

Here is the full FOJ statement:

BERN – By order of the Federal Office of Justice (FOJ), six soccer officials were arrested in Zurich today (Wednesday) and detained pending extradition. The US authorities suspect them of having received or paid bribes totaling in the USD millions.

The six soccer functionaries were arrested today in Zurich by the Zurich Cantonal Police. The FOJ’s arrest warrants were issued further to a request by the US authorities. The US Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York is investigating these individuals on suspicion of the acceptance of bribes and kick-backs between the early 1990s and the present day.

The bribery suspects – representatives of sports media and sports promotion firms – are alleged to have been involved in schemes to make payments to the soccer functionaries – delegates of FIFA (Fédération Internationale de Football Association) and other functionaries of FIFA sub-organizations – totaling more than USD 100 million.

In return, it is believed that they received media, marketing, and sponsorship rights in connection with soccer tournaments in Latin America. According to the US request, these crimes were agreed and prepared in the US, and payments were carried out via US banks

ASAP ROCKY 'I took LSD then had sex with 9 women at my mansion' A$AP Rocky brags

Looking for attention A$AP? Not only is he claiming to have slept with Rita Ora and Rihanna, he's now bragging about sleeping with 9 women during an orgy in his mansion after taking LSD .

The 26 year old told the New York Post about his drug-fueled sex parties that happened this past March at South By Southwest Music Festival in Austin, Texas, claiming to have had 3 orgies, with 9 women, after taking LSD during a break at the festival.

"There's definitely a psychedelic influence on my new album. Makonnen gave me acid at SXSW. This n***a looked like Buddha with a Jheri curl! After that, I went back to my mansion and f***ed nine chicks. It was pretty rad. That's a true story.'

'Yeah, nine women, but not all at one time. It's like group sex. You have three at a time, and then you have three orgies. That's nine chicks.' he said

Olu of warri community cup organised by,igbiaye toriseju, prince ejo royal family & supported by itsekiri youth forum abuja IYFA

Nigerian jailed for 5 years in Cambodia for raping a Norwegian tourist

A 26 year old Nigerian man, Ekwegbalu Ugochukwu Udok, has been sentenced to 5 years in jail by a Municipal court in Cambodia for beating and raping a Norwegian tourist, 27 year old Nodia Ebert, in December 2014. According to the presiding judge, on the day of the incident, the young lady had just stepped out of a night club when she met Udok who pretended to be a taxi driver and asked that she take a ride with him.

“Udok pretended to be a taxi driver, and asked her to take a ride from him. He said that he would bring her to the Okay Boutique Hotel, but instead, he brought her to his rental house. After arriving at his room, he raped her.” the presiding judge, Im Vanak said while presiding over the case.

Udok however says he will be appealing the court's judgement at the Cambodia Supreme court

"I believe that the court’s verdict was unjust for me, and I cannot accept it. I will bring the case to the Appeal Court.” Udok said outside the courtroom.

Heat wave in India kills over 500 people

Soaring temperatures have gripped parts of southern and northern India in an extreme heat wave which has killed more than 500 people and looks set to continue this week, officials said on Monday.

The hottest place in India was Allahabad, a city in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, which saw mercury rise to 47.7 degrees Celsius (117.8 Fahrenheit) on Sunday, while the capital Delhi recorded a high of 43.5C (110.3F).

Most of the 539 recorded deaths have been of construction workers, the elderly or the homeless in the southern states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, said officials, but some deaths have also occurred in Uttar Pradesh, Odisha and West Bengal.

The Indian Meteorological Department has issued a red warning to affected regions saying that the heat wave conditions are likely to continue over coming days.
Director of Andhra Pradesh's Disaster Management Department K. Dhananjaya Reddy said 325 people had died of sunstroke or dehydration in the state in the last three days.

"We are advising people not to go to work between 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.," said Reddy. "We have also opened centers in different places specially in urban areas for the distribution of water and butter milk."

The government has canceled the leave of all doctors as hospitals were being flooded with cases of heat-stroke, he said, adding that compensation of 100,000 rupees ($1,575) will be given to families of people who had died.

While in the neighboring state of Telangana, where 204 people have died, officials have advised people to stay indoors during peak afternoon hours, drink plenty of fluids and wear loose clothing.

Taxi drivers in Kolkata - capital of West Bengal state where four deaths have been reported - refused to work between 11 a.m. and 4 p.m. after two cabbies died in their cars last week.

Reuters

I Was In An Abusive Relationship – Tope Osoba

Having danced for music stars like Rasqie, Pasuma, Adewale Ayuba, Olu Maintain Weird MC amongst others, Abeokuta born actress, Temitope Osoba has finally made the transition from being a dance queen to not only an established actress but also a movie producer. World Famous as she is popularly called,  Tope who made her debut in the movie world in  the movie, Ijoya actress has so far remained consistence with her resolve to become an accomplished actress. Known for her action packed movie roles, the graduate of Business Education from Olabisi Onabanjo University recently premiered her first body of work, ‘Single ladies’. She speaks on her acting prowess and other issues

How do you feel premiering your first movie?

I feel excited and happy that against all odds, my first body of work will be out pretty soon and I also I want to give all glory to God almighty for making it possible. To my entire cast and crew, I want them to know that I appreciate them so well .

After several years in the industry, why did it take you so long to come out with your own movie?

Like the popular saying, nothing good comes easy, I was just taking my time to make sure I satisfy my fans and don’t fall short of what they expect from me.  It took so long to get this work done properly considering that there were hiccups somewhere along the line but the most important thing is that I am out now with my movie and I just believe it is the right my time and much more should be expected from me.

What inspired the title Single Ladies?

A lot of things happening around me informed the title most especially relationships with the female gender being at the receiving end. The main focus of the movie is tilted towards every single lady or single mothers who have relationship problems . They should not push themselves to the wall but they should rather, stand up for themselves and move on with life .I am just trying to portray different kinds of relationships people have through the movie. The experiences; the good, the bad and the ugly.  I am also appealing to men not to hit their women no matter what.

Why did you decide to shoot a relationship-themed movie?

I will attribute that to the little experience I have in my relationship. Things around me inspired me to choose that particular story line about relationship. I had a particular experience which I will like people to learn from.

Are you trying to tell your own story?

Well maybe, maybe not but the fact still remains that we make mistakes and we are not always right . Also we tend not to handle things in right way and sometimes things won’t just work the way we want it to.

What really happened?

It wasn’t just working. He wasn’t supporting my career; there was abuse, no true love, there was trust issue and I was thinking I could hold it down. Dating him dragged me down, affected my life and career negatively. I couldn’t help but  to let him go. I was too weak to keep the relationship, but at the end of the day, I thank God I was able to regain my strength.

Are you in a relationship now?

Of course yes. And the relationship is the sweetest ever. The love in my life now is my childhood friend and I guess God has a plan for everything. So I will just say God is working.

Is it an English speaking movie?

No. Single ladies is a 70 per cent  Yoruba language and 30per cent  English speaking movie so as to cut across to everyone.

What challenges did you face in the cause of producing the movie?

A lot. I missed lectures, exams, tests just because I was trying to bring out a message to members of the public. Financial constraints, locations, electricity and a host of others but thank God all is well now.

The movie ought to have been premiered on March 28th. Will you say the shift in date was worth the wait?

It was worth the while because that was like God working for me. I did not have enough time because there was a lot of pressure on me. Then the election was moved to that same date and I became very confused but thank God it all came out well.

How did the journey into acting start for you?

I never had any interest in acting. I started out as dancer and what I knew best was dancing and singing. So, I guess acting chose me because I never liked acting. I could recall one day, coming from school, I dropped at Berger bus stop. I was tired but I decided to go to Adeniyi Jones where we used for our dance rehearsals. That was how I saw some actresses rehearsing for Ijoya by Laide Bakare. When I entered, Seyi Ariyo (She Baby) quickly pointed me out to the director who requested to see what I have done in the past. I showed them clips of a dance session with Weird MC and they fell in love with it. That was how I got my first script.