A former official of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), Paulinus Iheanacho Okoronkwo, has been sentenced to 87 months in prison in the United States after being found guilty of accepting a $2.1 million bribe from a Swiss oil firm.
Okoronkwo, 58, who is also known as “Pollie,” was sentenced by a United States District Judge, John F. Walter, after a four-day trial concluded in August 2025. Details of the sentencing were released in a statement published on the website of the United States Department of Justice on Thursday.
In addition to the prison term, the court ordered Okoronkwo to pay $923,824 in restitution to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). He was also directed to forfeit $1,039,997, which represents the net proceeds from the sale of a property linked to the laundering of the bribe money.
According to court documents, a jury found Okoronkwo guilty of three counts of transactional money laundering, one count of tax evasion, and one count of obstruction of justice.
The case began in January 2024 when the US Attorney’s Office in the Central District of California indicted him on charges of engaging in monetary transactions involving property derived from unlawful activity, tax evasion, and obstruction of justice.
Prosecutors told the court that Okoronkwo received the bribe in 2015 while serving as General Manager of the Upstream Division of NNPC, as the company was then known. In that position, he was considered a foreign public official with fiduciary duties to the Nigerian government.
At the same time, Okoronkwo, who holds both US and Nigerian citizenship, was practising law in Los Angeles. He handled immigration, family, and personal injury cases through his private law firm.
Court filings revealed that in October 2015, Addax Petroleum, a Switzerland-based subsidiary of Chinese state-owned oil company Sinopec, wired $2,105,263 to an Interest on Lawyers’ Trust Account (IOLTA) belonging to Okoronkwo’s Los Angeles law firm.
The payment was described as consultancy fees for negotiating drilling rights in Nigeria. However, prosecutors argued that the money was in fact a bribe meant to secure favourable terms for Addax’s crude oil operations in Nigeria.
Investigators said the engagement letter between Addax and Okoronkwo’s law firm carried a fake Lagos address. According to the prosecution, this was done to hide the true nature of the transaction and give it a false appearance of legitimacy.
The jury agreed with the prosecution that the payment was unlawful and not a genuine consultancy fee.
Further investigations showed that part of the money was transferred to a company known as IPO Capital LLC. From there, the funds were allegedly used for personal expenses.
Court documents revealed that Okoronkwo used some of the money to purchase a vehicle and a residential property in Valencia, California. The property was later sold, and the proceeds became part of the forfeiture order issued by the court.
Prosecutors also found that Okoronkwo failed to report the $2.1 million payment on his 2015 federal income tax return. This led to the tax evasion charge.
In June 2022, during questioning by federal investigators, Okoronkwo allegedly claimed that the funds were client money held in trust and not income. Prosecutors said this statement was false and amounted to obstruction of justice.
Following the scandal, Okoronkwo was dismissed from NNPC, which has since been restructured and renamed the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited under the Petroleum Industry Act.
In January 2026, the State Bar of California suspended his law licence, preventing him from practising law in the state.
The US Department of Justice described the case as part of broader efforts to fight corruption and financial crimes involving foreign officials and international business transactions.
Nigeria’s oil and gas sector has long faced allegations of corruption and mismanagement. As Africa’s largest oil producer, Nigeria depends heavily on crude oil exports for government revenue.
Over the years, both Nigerian and foreign authorities have investigated cases involving bribery, illegal payments, and contract manipulation in the oil industry.
The United States has strict anti-corruption and money laundering laws, especially when financial transactions pass through US banks or involve US citizens. In this case, the funds were transferred into a US-based bank account linked to Okoronkwo’s law firm, giving US authorities jurisdiction to prosecute.
The sentencing of a former senior NNPC official in a US court is likely to raise fresh concerns about transparency in Nigeria’s oil sector.
NNPCL has in recent years pledged to improve accountability and corporate governance following reforms introduced by the Petroleum Industry Act. The company now operates as a limited liability company, although it remains fully owned by the Federal Government.
While the US authorities have concluded their prosecution, it is not immediately clear whether Nigerian agencies will pursue further action related to the case.
For now, Okoronkwo will serve his prison term in the United States, marking a significant fall for a man who once held a senior position in Nigeria’s most important state-owned company.