Close Menu
  • Home
  • Finance News
  • Personal Finance
  • Investing
  • Cards
    • Credit Cards
    • Debit
  • Insurance
  • Loans
  • Mortgage
  • More
    • Save Money
    • Banking
    • Taxes
    • Crime
What's Hot

EarnIn launches Early Pay for paychecks | PaymentsSource

March 21, 2025

How to Retire Like an Adult: An 11-Point Checklist for Responsible Freedom

March 21, 2025

How Trump’s Chaos Is Exacerbating The Financial Woes Of Colleges

March 21, 2025
Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram
Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram
InCapital Direct
Subscribe
  • Home
  • Finance News
  • Personal Finance
  • Investing
  • Cards
    • Credit Cards
    • Debit
  • Insurance
  • Loans
  • Mortgage
  • More
    • Save Money
    • Banking
    • Taxes
    • Crime
InCapital Direct
Home»Financial Crime»Britain’s Serious Fraud Office has spent £16 million on a botched Unaoil investigation
Financial Crime

Britain’s Serious Fraud Office has spent £16 million on a botched Unaoil investigation

December 24, 2024No Comments4 Mins Read
Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Telegram Pinterest Tumblr Reddit WhatsApp Email
Britain’s Serious Fraud Office has spent £16 million on a botched Unaoil investigation
Share
Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Email

Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free

Britain’s Serious Fraud Office has spent £16.2 million on its failed corruption investigation into oil consultancy Unaoil. Nearly a third of that went to compensate three executives it wrongly prosecuted, according to data it was ordered to make public by a tribunal.

The years-long investigation into corrupt oil and gas deals made by Monaco-based Unaoil resulted in tensions with the agency’s US counterparts, a critical review by the British government and the acquittal of three defendants because they did not receive a fair trial.

The SFO spent £11.3 million on the investigation and a further £4.9 million on settlements with the defendants. according to a freedom of information request submitted by the Financial Times.

The anti-fraud agency resisted making public the costs of the investigation for almost 18 months, until the First-tier Tribunal ordered the agency to provide the data in November.

The revelation underlines the impact of the failure of the high-profile case for the SFO under former director Lisa Osofsky, which, in addition to the collapse of a number of other key cases, has left the agency scrambling to regain its reputation to build and safeguard its reputation. back on a safe base.

Lisa Osofsky, former head of the SFO
Lisa Osofsky served as director of the SFO from September 2018 to August 2023 © Chris J. Ratcliffe/Bloomberg

A spokesperson for the SFO said: “We recognize the public interest in our cases and publish information about our work wherever possible, while protecting more sensitive details about our investigations.”

The SFO first opened a criminal investigation into Unaoil, its officers, employees and agents in 2016 for suspected offenses of bribery, corruption and money laundering. The case led to a series of criminal investigations into major Western multinationals, including KBR and Petrofac.

See also  Serious Fraud Office receives extra funding to combat financial crime

The KBR investigation was ultimately closed, while prosecutions in the Petrofac case are still ongoing.

Unaoil was run by the British-Iranian Ahsani family, founded by father Ata Ahsani and operated with his sons Cyrus and Saman.

Ata Ahsani paid the US Department of Justice a $2.25 million settlement, but was never convicted. Cyrus and Saman pleaded guilty to the charges and cooperated with the DoJ in exchange for lenient sentences. Saman was sentenced to one year in prison in 2023. Cyrus has yet to be sentenced.

Saman Ahsani
Saman Ahsani pleaded guilty to the charges and cooperated with the US DoJ © Rebecca Marshall/New York Times/Redux/Eyevine

In Britain, the SFO has prosecuted four people in connection with the bribery scandal. Ziad Akle and Stephen Whiteley were both territory managers of Unaoil. Paul Bond worked for Unaoil client, Dutch energy services company SBM Offshore, and Basil al-Jarah was Unaoil’s former partner in Iraq.

Al Jarah pleaded guilty and was sentenced to three years and four months in prison. The other three individuals were found guilty of conspiracy to make corrupt payments and imprisoned before their convictions were overturned on appeal.

The case involved a fierce battle between the US and British investigations, which led to former SFO director Osofsky being dragged into the scandal because of her personal contact with David Tinsley, a representative of the Ahsanis.

Tinsley, a retired US Drug Enforcement Agency official, had offered to convince a former Unaoil executive and business partner to plead guilty in Britain in exchange for the SFO dropping its case against the Ahsanis.

See also  Meta expands data agreement with British banks to reduce online fraud

The SFO eventually stopped pursuing Cyrus and Saman after striking a deal with the DoJ. In response to a government-ordered review of the case, Osofsky said the agency was reviewing its “work practices and culture.”

The three former executives found guilty at trial in Britain had their convictions overturned on appeal in 2021 and 2022, partly due to Tinsley’s role in the wider case and the SFO’s botched disclosure related to the contact of the service with him.

The investigation also led to an employment claim against the SFO, which lost the agency after one of its prosecutors was fired in connection with the case.

Lawyers for the defendants in the British case declined to comment or did not immediately respond to requests for comment. A lawyer for Bond said the cost to taxpayers of the case was “eye-watering” and that “no one has been truly held accountable for the decision to blindly proceed with this baseless prosecution.”

Previous representatives for the Ahsanis did not immediately respond to emails from the FT.

The judgement of the Unaoil inquiry in 2022 concluded that while some events were “beyond the control of the SFO”, others were caused by “failings on the part of certain individuals and/or by ‘cultural’ issues” within the organisation.

Source link

botched Britains fraud investigation million Office Spent Unaoil
Share. Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr Telegram Email
Previous ArticleFAQ about money market accounts
Next Article Smart Money Podcast — Deck the Bills: Smart Spending and Credit Tips for the Holidays

Related Posts

Patriot National raises $50 million, parts ways with CEO

March 20, 2025

Social Security turns to in-person office visits to curb identity fraud

March 20, 2025

5 things banks, payment firms can do to deter fraud | PaymentsSource

March 19, 2025
Add A Comment
Leave A Reply Cancel Reply

Top Posts

The Secret to Making Successful Financial New Year’s Resolutions

December 23, 2024

When should you spend your emergency fund?

March 15, 2025

Maintaining safe and secure digital payments requires all hands on deck | PaymentsSource

January 21, 2025
Ads Banner

Subscribe to Updates

Subscribe to Get the Latest Financial Tips and Insights Delivered to Your Inbox!

Stay informed with our finance blog! Get expert insights, money management tips, investment strategies, and the latest financial news to help you make smart financial decisions.

We're social. Connect with us:

Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram YouTube
Top Insights

EarnIn launches Early Pay for paychecks | PaymentsSource

March 21, 2025

How to Retire Like an Adult: An 11-Point Checklist for Responsible Freedom

March 21, 2025

How Trump’s Chaos Is Exacerbating The Financial Woes Of Colleges

March 21, 2025
Get Informed

Subscribe to Updates

Subscribe to Get the Latest Financial Tips and Insights Delivered to Your Inbox!

© 2025 incapitaldirect.com - All rights reserved.
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms & Conditions

Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.