Allen Onyema
A US court has issued a new arrest warrant for Air Peace Limited CEO Allen Onyema amid ongoing allegations of a $20 million bank fraud.
A federal court in North Georgia renewed the arrest warrant on October 9 following additional charges against Onyema and his co-defendant, Ejirogene Egaga, Air Peace’s administrative and financial director.
According to Premium Times, the new charges added on October 8 were obstruction of justice and conspiracy to obstruct justice, bringing the total number of charges against Onyema and Egaga to 38, including conspiracy, money laundering, bank fraud and identity theft.
The original 2019 arrest warrant allowed US marshals to arrest the suspects if they entered Canadian jurisdiction.
According to U.S. prosecutors, Onyema is accused of funneling suspicious funds from Nigeria into U.S. bank accounts between 2017 and 2018, disguised as funds for aircraft purchases.
Prosecutors allege that funds were funneled through Onyema’s US-based company, Springfield Aviation, ostensibly to purchase aircraft for Air Peace.
But they allege that Springfield Aviation never owned or sold the aircraft listed in the bank documents, which were allegedly forged to defraud American banks.
Prosecutors also allege that Egaga forged sales contracts and other documents submitted to US banks.
Ebony Mayfield, who hired Onyema as Springfield’s manager in 2016, signed the documents despite having no experience in aviation or finance.
Mayfield, a former bartender and waitress, was given a three-year suspended sentence in 2022 for her role in the conspiracy. The additional charges against Onyema stem from actions he allegedly took after the U.S. investigation came to light in 2019.
Prosecutors allege he instructed Mayfield to sign an undated agreement to drop the investigation, but that the agreement was then presented to U.S. authorities with a false date.
The case forms the basis of new obstruction of justice charges filed last month.
In a statement after the indictment, U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan accused Onyema of using Air Peace as a “front” to defraud U.S. banks. IRS Assistant Special Agent in Charge Lisa Fontanet also criticized Onyema for allegedly exploiting the U.S. banking system to hide funds.
In response, Air Peace reiterated Onyema’s innocence, calling the charges “mere allegations” and assuring him that he had cooperated fully with U.S. authorities.
In a statement, the company assured the public that the legal proceedings would not affect its operations and stressed its commitment to safety and reliability.