Omar Bongo: A Web of Corruption

Gabon’s former President Omar Bongo, who ruled from 1967 to 2009, has been at the center of numerous financial crime research studies. Investigations by US authorities and a corruption trial in France have uncovered a complex web of offshore accounts, shell companies, and suspicious transactions.

Bongo’s Financial Empire

• Private Bank Accounts: Bongo maintained a network of private bank accounts at Citibank in New York, managed by a Bahamian shell company called Tendin Investments Ltd.
• Bank Credit Relationships: He had extensive credit relationships with Citibank, obtaining multiple loans collateralized by his deposits between 1989 and 1996.
• Loans and Overdrafts: Many of these loans were issued under a complex arrangement in which the bank allowed Bongo’s accounts in Gabon to incur multi-million dollar overdrafts, which were immediately covered by transfers from Bongo’s accounts in Paris.

Corruption and Abuse of Power

• Elf-Aquitaine Payments: The French investigation uncovered evidence that Elf-Aquitaine, a French oil giant with close ties to Bongo’s regime, paid the President $40 million per year for concession rights to his country’s oil-rich but economically impoverished territory.
• Personal Finances: Bongo allegedly used these funds to finance his own lifestyle and maintain his grip on power.

Investigations and Revelations

• US Investigations: In 2006, US authorities discovered that Bongo had wired $18 million in funds from Gabon to a US corporate bank account of a lobbyist who then distributed the funds within the US and abroad.
• French Seizure of Assets: In 2007, French authorities seized 33 properties in Paris and Nice worth an estimated $190 million owned by Bongo’s family.

Challenges in Investigating Financial Crimes

The cases highlight the complex web of corruption and abuse of power that characterized Bongo’s presidency and the challenges of investigating financial crimes in countries with close ties to Western nations.