EXCLUSIVE: Nigerian ex-governor and wife reshuffled US property ownership after his arrest

The former governor of Nigeria’s Anambra State and his wife shifted ownership of some of their US property holdings beginning in 2022, a few months after he was arrested on suspicion of misappropriating public funds.

The case continues and the former governor has denied charges against him, which include embezzlement and money laundering.

Willie Obiano served as governor of Anambra from 2014 to 2022, and was arrested immediately after leaving office, as he was about to board a flight from Lagos to Houston.

After his arrest, Mr Obiano and his wife transferred ownership of six apartments in Texas, according to property records examined by OCCRP, the Platform to Protect Whistleblowers in Africa (PPLAAF), and the Houston Chronicle.

While they transferred ownership of six apartments, property records show that they still own four. There is no indication that any of the US properties were purchased with funds that Nigerian authorities allege were misappropriated.

Four of the apartments that were transferred were purchased before Mr Obiano became governor, while he was working in the private sector as a banker. Two of the transferred apartments were purchased during his time as governor. In total, the six apartments that were transferred are worth about $1.8 million, according to district property authorities.

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The first two transfers occurred in 2022, the same year as Mr Obiano’s arrest. He sold one apartment in Houston and his wife, Ebelechukwu Obiano, sold another in the same city.

Mrs Obiano told OCCRP via text message that the real estate deals were “private business,” and she declined to answer questions about the properties or the case against her husband.

The second set of property transfers took place in 2024, the year Mr Obiano was charged with embezzlement and laundering N4 billion (approximately $4.4 million at the time) in state funds. Records show that Mr Obiano and his wife moved ownership of four properties into a Texas company called Wilveg Investments Series LLC.

According to a corporate amendment document, Mrs Obiano became the registered agent for Wilveg Investments Series LLC in November 2023. The company’s incorporation record shows that it was formed in 2010 with four managers, including Mr Obiano, his wife, and his daughter.

Aside from sending questions to his wife, reporters attempted to contact Mr Obiano via phone numbers in the names of his lawyer and a spokesperson. However, there was no response to messages sent to those numbers.

Mr Obiano is facing a nine-count indictment filed by Nigeria’s Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, which accuses him of misappropriating funds from the Anambra State Government Security Vote Account.

Security Vote Account funds “are provided to certain federal, state and local government officials to disburse at their discretion,” according to a joint 2018 report by Transparency International and the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Center.

While the funds “are reserved for covering unforeseen security needs,” the Security Vote Account “fuels corruption in Nigeria,” the report said.

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“Security vote spending is not subject to legislative oversight or independent audit because of its ostensibly sensitive nature,” leaving the funds vulnerable to embezzlement, according to the report.

Mr Obiano has rejected the allegations against him. His trial has stalled following the suspension of the presiding judge by Nigeria’s National Judicial Council for unrelated misconduct.

Property records show that Mr Obiano and his wife continue to own an apartment together in Texas, which they purchased in 2011. Mrs Obiano owns two more apartments in the state, purchased in 2011 and 2024. She bought another in 2014, which she transferred to her daughter the following year.