Group Demand justice for Abegundi, calls for review of his judgment by US Authorities

The Concerned Nigerians Against Racial Injustice (CONARI) has called on the Nigeria’s President Muhammad Buhari to mediate through the Nigerian Embassy in the United States and the Nigerian Diaspora Commission for an immediate review of Mr Abegundi’s case by the US authorities.

A major stakeholder of the Concerned Nigerians Salisu Manager made the call on behalf of the group during a media briefing he convened in Kano.
“Imminently and of urgent importance, we call on Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari to direct the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geaofrey Onyeama, the Nigerian Embassy in the United Stated and the Nigerian Diasporan Commission (NDC) to commence immediate action to demand an immediate review of Mr Abegundi’s case by the US authorities”
“We also call on the Attorney General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, to also intervene accordingly in the matter of Ojo who is facing a potential extradition situation. “

The group also called on U.S authorities particularly the U.S Attorney General Merrick Garland, the U.S Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, the American Civil Liberty’s Union (ACLU), the Black Lives Matter Movement (BLM), the MAACP and the U.S Media in general should all come together to demand justice for Abegundi. 

“Mr Olufolajimi Abegundi an enterprising young Nigerian family man who founded FJ Williams Inc. after an academic foray in a top-rated University in Texas was falsely convicted in a United States Prison following a high-level conspiracy between the FBI and US Prosecutors. An investigation has revealed a skewed justice process fraught with coercion, intimidation, impersonations, falsification, and racial injustice which brought about his unjust incarceration on framed-up charges in the United State of America for six years. Having spent 15 months of the six years, there is still no tangible evidence to show for his alleged crimes and the victim has continued to call for a review of his case which keeps falling on deaf ears”

Salisu Manaja narrated how the case began “Abegunde relocated to the U.S. from Nigeria in 2014 to pursue a Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree at Texas A & M University in College Station, Texas. Upon graduating with the class of 2016, and recognizing opportunities in the remittances industry, Abegunde incorporated FJ Williams Inc. doing business As (DBA) TranzAlert. The investigation found that TranzAlert, a financial technology startup was duly licensed and registered with all the extant industry regulatory bodies including the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FINCEN), U.S. Department of the Treasury, the Georgia Department of Banking and Finance, and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). According to court records, these licenses and registrations permitted TranzAlert to engage in the currency exchange, and international remittance business. “

“According to publicly available financial regulatory documents that were reviewed in the course of the investigation, obtaining these licenses — that TranzAlert received from the regulatory agencies — requires rigorous actions and uncommon resources both in the U.S. and Nigeria. Click here to view regulatory licenses associated with Abegunde’s business, FJ Williams Inc. DBA TranzAlert.His Travails: According to court records sighted by investigation, Abegunde’s travails began in August 2016 when his longtime friend, Ayodeji Ojo visited the US from Nigeria along with his pregnant wife and infant daughter. Ojo and his family were accommodated by Abegunde at his home in Atlanta, Georgia. In an interview by security agents, Ojo disclosed that at the time of the visit, he had a wholly legitimate check of $26,900 that was issued to him by Bank of America. Ojo claimed that he intended to cash the check and utilize the funds for expenses associated with his family’s trip, including medical expenses related to his pregnant wife. According to Ojo, after being unsuccessful in his attempts to cash the check at multiple Bank of America branches, due to the relatively large size of the check, he was advised by a Bank of America banker to open a new bank account at another bank, let the check go through the clearing process before the funds would become available to him. ” sales Manaja Added
Salisu Manaja who spoke at length about the Genesis of the issue which landed Mr. Abegundi in prison Appealed to relevant Authorities in Nigeria and Diaspore to carefully revisit the case and ensure that justice prevails