US ‘will trace’ Nigeria’s stolen wealth globally

The United States government has agreed to assist Nigeria recover all identified ill-gotten wealth in countries in which they have jurisdiction.

Loretta Lynch, attorney-general of the US, disclosed this during a meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday.

Lynch said her country was in support of the battle against corruption in Nigeria, disclosing some of the strategies that would be used in recovering the stolen assets.

“The United States will offer training to judicial staff and prosecutors in order to place Nigeria in a good position to uncover proceeds of corruption and for improved prosecution of cases of crime,” Garba Shehu, senior special assistant to the president on media and publicity, revealed in a statement issued on Tuesday.

“Details emerging from the meeting between President Buhari and the United States attorney-general, Loretta Lynch, on the subject of support for the war on corruption in Nigeria indicate that the mutual legal assistance treaty signed between the two countries in 1985 which came into effect in 2003 would be given some teeth.

“There will be collaboration. Each of the two countries will receive legal assistance from the other on criminal matters and that should cover the recovery of ill-gotten wealth.

“On extradition, we already have a treaty with US by virtue of being a former British colonial territory.

“There is, however, the possibility that Nigeria might negotiate a new extradition treaty to meet our other requirements. The negotiation will be done under the auspices of a ‘re-energized’ US-Nigeria bi-national commission.”

Buhari has consistently lamented on the level of corruption in the country, vowing to recover billions of dollars within his first three months in office.