Paulinus Iheanacho Okoronkwo, a Los Angeles lawyer and one-time general manager at the Nigerian National Petroleum Corp., has been charged with accepting a $2.1 million bribe. The indictment, announced by the U.S. Attorney’s Office and filed by a federal grand jury, contains five counts against Okoronkwo.
Okoronkwo is accused of receiving the large sum from Switzerland-based Addax Petroleum, a subsidiary of China’s state-run oil conglomerate Sinopec Corp., in 2015. This payment came after Okoronkwo allegedly negotiated favorable oil drilling rights for Sinopec in Nigeria.
On top of the bribery allegations, the indictment also accuses Okoronkwo of tax evasion. He purportedly failed to include the $2.1 million on his federal income tax return. Additionally, there are charges raised against Okoronkwo for apparently lying to investigators about the nature of the payment.
The case underscores the ongoing global challenges organizations face in the energy sector, with legal obligations in foreign operations becoming an increasing area of liability. Such transgressions of law, if proven, demonstrate how vital it is for companies, especially those operating across multi-jurisdictional lines, to maintain strict internal regulations and oversight to ensure legal compliance.
To read the original report on this incident, please visit the Bloomberg Law article here.