Chadian diplomats face $34 m claim over oil rights bribe
Wednesday July 01 2015
An envoy who served as ambassador to the US and Canada and his deputy used their positions to influence the award of oil development rights in Chad to Griffiths Energy International Inc. PHOTO | TEA GRAPHIC
Two Chadian diplomats are facing a $34 million claim from US prosecutors for receiving a bribe from a Canadian oil company.
Mahamoud Adam Bechir, 50, who served as Chad’s ambassador to the United States and Canada, and his deputy, Youssouf Hamid Takane, 52, used their positions to influence the award of oil development rights in Chad to Griffiths Energy International Inc.
US prosecutors say in exchange, Griffiths Energy issued four million shares to the wives of Bechir, Takane as well as another associate.
Griffiths Energy is alleged to have further agreed with Mr Bechir and his wife that the company would pay a $2 million “consulting fee” to his wife.
“After securing the desired oil development rights in February 2011, Griffiths Energy allegedly transferred $2 million to an account held by a shell company created by Bechir’s wife,” says a statement from the US department of Justice.
“This bribe payment was commingled and laundered through US bank accounts and real property, and eventually was transferred to Bechir’s bank account in South Africa.”
Mr Bechir is currently serving as Chad’s Ambassador to South Africa while Mr Takane still resides in the United States.
In 2013, Griffiths Energy pleaded guilty in Canadian court to bribing Bechir and his associates and fined $10 million under the Corruption of Foreign Public Officials Act for bribing Chadian officials.
The US is seeking $34 million in forfeiture which represents the cash value of the four million shares in Griffiths Energy that were provided to the wives of Bechir, Takane and their associate.
In a separate action filed in 2014, the United States is also seeking the civil forfeiture of over $100,000 in allegedly laundered funds traceable to the $2 million bribe payment.
The investigation was conducted by the FBI’s Kleptocracy Asset Recovery Initiative under the Criminal Division’s Asset Forfeiture and Money Laundering Section.
The division works to “forfeit the proceeds of foreign official corruption and, where appropriate, return those proceeds to benefit the people harmed by these acts of corruption and abuse of office,” says the department of Justice.