Former Delta State governor, James Ibori, was found to have established limited liability companies and foundations in secret offshore tax havens to hide some of the funds allegedly taken from the state’s treasury, a leak of secret tax documents has revealed. Ibori, who is currently serving jail term in the United Kingdom, after pleading guilty to fraud charges in 2012, enlisted his immediate family as beneficiaries of the offshore companies and foundations.

Details of how Mr. Ibori allegedly took the funds were contained in a leak of about 11.5 million secret documents owned by the Panama-based international law firm, Mossack Fonseca, obtained by the German newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitungand shared by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, ICIJ, and over 100 other media partners in 82 countries. The Panama papers scandal has been described as the biggest leak in history.

To hide the funds, Mr. Ibori, working through a Swiss asset management firm Clamorgan S.A. in Geneva, was said to have established several offshore companies, including Stanhope Investments Limited, Julex Foundation, and The Hopes Trust, enlisting himself, his wife and daughters as beneficiaries.

Clamorgan prides itself as a company that provides asset management, fiduciary services, immovable property administration, among others, and operates under the laws of Geneva, Switzerland.

The leaked papers have now revealed how Mr. Ibori used offshore shell companies and foundations to launder Delta State’s money, including an attempt to take out a massive loan from Lloyds Bank in London. The beneficiaries of Mr. Ibori’s Julex Foundation were Mr. Ibori himself; his wife Theresa, and some other believed to be his daughters: Obianuju, Ehriatake Ibori, Otonvwen, Eseoghene, Oberhili and Eguono.

•Excerpted from a Vanguard report. Photo shows Ibori.

Update news