Ex-NNPC Boss Sentenced to 7 Years for $2.1M Bribe

Paulinu Iheanacho Okoronkwo, the former General Manager of the upstream division of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), was sentenced to 87 months in a U.S. federal prison for his involvement in a multimillion-dollar bribery and money laundering case. The sentencing, delivered by U.S.

District Judge John Walter, follows Okoronkwo's conviction for receiving a $2.1 million bribe related to oil drilling rights in Nigeria. He is also ordered to pay $923,000 in restitution to the Internal Revenue Service and to forfeit $1 million linked to the sale of properties purchased with laundered funds.

The investigation revealed that Okoronkwo had disguised the bribe as a consulting fee and used a fake address to conceal the transaction. Additionally, he failed to declare the bribe on his 2015 tax return.

Okoronkwo, a dual citizen of the U.S. and Nigeria, had fiduciary duties to the Nigerian government and public officials, and his law license in California is under suspension pending further investigation.