Posted on 11/22/2005 4:33:26 PM PST by Aussie Dasher
DISGUISED as a woman, smuggled across borders by train, plane and speedboat - the flight of a Nigerian state governor charged with money-laundering in Britain is fast becoming the stuff of legend in his home country.
Diepreye Alamieyeseigha earned the title of "Master of Deception" in today's issue of the This Day newspaper, which published a digital photo-montage of him in a red dress, sparkling necklace, red woman's head-dress and lipstick.
The governor of Bayelsa state was facing trial in London for laundering STG1.8 million ($4.21 million).
But in Nigeria he enjoys immunity from prosecution and when he returned home yesterday thousands of supporters gave him a hero's welcome.
Police had found STG1 million ($2.34 million) in cash at his London address and authorities have restrained cash and property worth STG10 million ($23.4 million) held in Britain in the governor's name.
But Mr Alamieyeseigha forfeited a STG1.25 million ($2.92 million) bond, jumped bail and made his way home with forged documents and wearing women's clothes, according to the Nigerian Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.
Today's Vanguard newspaper, quoting a security source, said the governor took a train from London to Paris, then flew from Paris to Douala, a port in Cameroon which neighbours Nigeria.
There, a speedboat was waiting to whisk him back to his home village of Amassoma, in the mangrove swamps and creeks of the Niger Delta, where he arrived in the dead of night.
Asked how he had managed to evade British controls, he was quoted as saying in Nigeria's Sun newspaper: "I don't know myself. I just woke up and found myself in Amassoma."
The Guardian quoted a personal aide of the governor in London as saying the escape was run "like a mafia operation".
A British security source said Mr Alamieyeseigha had not been watched around the clock because that would have required a large team due to the layout of his London home.
"We don't do surveillance unless it's a terrorist or high-profile case. In white-collar crime or fraud it isn't done," the source said.
"If you're dressed as a woman and you carry the passport of a woman I don't think anyone is going to look too closely. Our borders are not too secure."
News filtered out in the early hours that the governor was back and by daybreak hundreds thronged his Amassoma home. Then he drove in triumph into the state capital Yenagoa, where thousands lined the streets to cheer him.
The governor is popular in Bayelsa, partly because he is an ethnic nationalist from the Ijaw, the dominant tribe there. Not all Bayelsans were delighted to see him back, however, and today about 2000 people marched in protest in Yenagoa.
Pictures from yesterday showed a beaming Mr Alamieyeseigha waving to the crowds wearing a man's cream suit and a black hat.
He looked much trimmer than when he left Nigeria, suggesting that at least one aspect of his trip to Europe was a success. He underwent a tummy-tuck operation in Germany just before he was arrested in London in September.
I'd do a google search for "cross-dressing" to post a photo, but I'm afraid of what I'd find.
I'll just say that I've sent this out to my email list.
I am tired of news outlets referring to photos and images and then not including them in their stories.
All news organizations do it all the time.
Can't a reporter carry a digital camera to take a couple pictures to be included? They don't have to be professional photographers. Most news photos will never win a prize but can convey information.
Why did this outlet not include the picture?
I already knew that. I got an Email describing her plight. I'm going to help her get the bail back and will be rewarded for my efforts with half of the bail amount. Pretty cool, huh?
"Hello, I am a former governor of a state in Nigeria. Due to political circumstances, I had to leave my country suddenly carrying a large amount of cash. I need the assistance of someone to deposit my cash in his bank account...."
If it was that easy for him to leave the country shouldn't it be as easy for Ahmed Abdullah to get in with some 'cargo?' Or maybe there are so many potential threats already within Britain (and Europe in general) that it really doesn't matter much at this point.
Is this the same guy who keeps sending me all those requests to use my bank account for sheltering money and promises I'll end up with millions? Inquiring minds want to know.
One with a true vision is hard to argue with.
Yeah. All I got was an offer from the Oil Minister of Oombabamaumau for a few million if I gave him my checking account and PIN numbers.
One with a true vision and a Transporter is hard to argue with.
"Lieutenant Commander Scott, EXPLAIN YOURSELF!"
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