The Abacha affair: the powers of the Serious Fraud Office

The news that the Serious Fraud Office is to investigate the role that UK banks played in the removal of funds from Nigeria by Sani Abacha and his associates is an opportunity to revisit the powers of the SFO. Michael Grant of London Guildhall University provides a detailed review.

The Serious Fraud Office has now bowed to international pressure and is to investigate the role of several UK banks in handling money that was allegedly removed from Nigeria by its former President, General Sani Abacha. News of the investigation emerged a few days before John Abbott, Director General of the National Criminal Intelligence Service, gave rather disturbing evidence to members of the Parliamentary International Development Committee. He advised the Committee that fewer than one in four of the United Kingdom’s 554 authorised banks had submitted a suspicious activity report last year. The reporting rate was even lower in other financial service sectors with reports submitted by just 33 of the 840 insurance companies and 57 of the 12,500 solicitors. The figure for accountants was just 17 representing 0.1 per cent of the total. Indeed of the 14,500 reports sent to the National Criminal Intelligence Service, last year 78 per cent came from just 10 banks. Perhaps it is an opportune moment to remind readers of the investigation powers that are available to the Serious Fraud office in its up and coming investigation.