US Court Renews Arrest Warrant for Air Peace CEO Allen Onyema Over Alleged $20 Million Bank Fraud

A United States court has reissued an arrest warrant for Allen Onyema, the founder and CEO of Air Peace Limited, over a long-standing $20 million bank fraud case that has been under investigation for the past five years. The new arrest warrant was issued on October 9, 2024, by the federal district court for Northern Georgia, Atlanta, following the filing of a superseding indictment that added new charges to the case.

The superseding indictment, filed on October 8, 2024, introduced two additional charges of obstruction of justice and conspiracy to obstruct justice. These new charges bring the total number of allegations against Onyema and his co-defendant, Ejiroghene Eghagha, the airline’s Chief of Administration and Finance, to 38. The previous indictment had included 36 counts, which comprised conspiracy, money laundering, bank fraud, credit application fraud, and identity theft.

US authorities allege that Onyema and Eghagha used fraudulent means to move large sums of money from Nigeria to the United States between 2017 and 2018, disguising the funds as payments for aircraft purchases. The funds were transferred from Nigerian bank accounts to accounts linked to Onyema’s US-based firm, Springfield Aviation LLC, which prosecutors claim was used to facilitate the illegal transactions.

According to the indictment, the two defendants falsely applied for export letters of credit for the transfer of funds from Nigerian banks to Springfield Aviation. The funds were purportedly meant for the purchase of aircraft for Air Peace, but prosecutors argue that the aircraft mentioned in the transactions were never owned or sold by Springfield Aviation.

The case first surfaced in 2019 when US authorities accused Onyema of moving approximately $15 million in suspicious transactions through his Wells Fargo account in Atlanta. On the day the superseding indictment was filed, Assistant US Attorney Christopher Huber requested a new arrest warrant for Onyema, after an initial one was issued in 2019. The new warrant was signed by a deputy clerk on October 9, 2024, and delivered to the US Marshal for execution.

In addition to the previous charges, the recent superseding indictment also accuses Onyema of submitting false documents in 2019 in an attempt to obstruct the investigation and unfreeze his bank accounts. Prosecutors claim that Onyema directed his co-defendant, Eghagha, to submit fabricated contracts, including false purchase agreements, to US authorities in order to end the investigation into the alleged fraud.

The US Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia has emphasized that Onyema, through Springfield Aviation, used the US banking system to hide the source of the illicit funds. “After allegedly using his airline company as a cover to commit fraud, Onyema and his co-defendant allegedly committed additional crimes in an effort to derail the government’s investigation,” said US Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan.

In response to the new indictment, Air Peace and Onyema’s legal team have maintained their client’s innocence, asserting that the case is still ongoing in court. The airline issued a statement affirming Onyema and Eghagha’s commitment to cooperating with authorities, and reassured the public that the legal proceedings would not disrupt Air Peace’s operations. “We remain confident that, through due process, the truth will be revealed, and our CEO and co-defendant will be exonerated,” the airline said.

Air Peace emphasized that the airline continues to operate without interruption, focusing on delivering quality services to its customers despite the ongoing legal challenges.