President Muhammadu Buhari’s regime has petitioned the United States government to recover Nigeria’s $6.1 million the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) seized from Ara Dolarian, an arms dealer in America, following a report by Peoples Gazette.

In September 2021, The Gazette reported that Judge Erica Grosjean of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California ordered the forfeiture after Mr Dolarian, an illegal arms dealer hired by the Nigerian government to help circumvent the U.S. ban on arms sale to Nigeria, despite lacking requisite approvals to conduct arms trade.

The report has prompted Mr Buhari’s regime to claim ownership of the fund on the grounds that the country was not aware Mr Dolarian was conducting illegal business that contravened U.S laws.

“The funds sent by ‘S.E.l’ was for the procurement of weapons on behalf of the Nigerian government. Furthermore, the ‘CLAIMANT THE FRN’ was not aware that the funds ‘S.E.I and it (sic) agents were in violation of the laws of the United States Government specifically the ‘AECA, 22 U.S.C. § 2778, et seq., when the Nigerian Government contracted for the supply and delivery of military weapons for the protection of its borders,” said the petition filed by Jovi Usude on behalf of Nigeria in April 2022.

The petition added, “That the Court schedule a hearing on this petition in the manner set forth in 221 U.S.C. § 853to determine that the ‘PETITIONER THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA’ is entitled to the immediate and exclusive possession of the personal property described above, namely entire amount of $8,618,647.00, plus interest, plus loss of use of funds, and all damages that will be proven before this Court.”

Although the initial amount wired to Mr Dolarian was roughly $8.6 million, he had squandered over $1 million on his personal expenses and settlement of outstanding taxes before the U.S. government could enforce the forfeiture.

Out of the $8.6 million Mr Dolarian received from the Nigerian government, the FBI seized over $6 million that remained in his account as of February 2015. 

Documents previously seen by The Gazette showed Sambo Dasuki, the national security adviser under President Goodluck Jonathan, had initiated the deal as a last resort to rout Boko Haram terrorists and boost his principal’s re-election chances at the 2015 polls.

Mr Dasuki contracted Hima Aboubakar, the controversial promoter of Societe D’Equipments Internationaux (SEI), to help broker a deal for high‑explosive bombs, rockets, military-grade firearms, and aircraft-mounted cannons to be deployed against Boko Haram.

To execute the deal, Mr Aboubakar, a citizen of the Niger Republic, entered a sales agreement with Mr Dolarian, who did not have a licence to export arms or broker arms deals as the U.S. had restricted the sale of arms to countries known for flagrant human rights abuses under the Leahy amendments.

“At no point did Ara Dolarian (Dolarian), Dolarian Capital Inc. (DCI) or their affiliates receive DDTC approval to broker defence articles to Nigeria,” the U.S. Homeland Security said in the charges.

Mr Aboubakar has since been declared wanted by the EFCC as part of several controversial arms deals he brokered for Nigeria, but the anti-graft agency has been unable to apprehend him or file competent charges in court.