A Los Angeles lawyer was convicted by a federal jury of accepting a $2.1 million bribe while serving as an official for Nigeria’s state-owned oil company. The verdict was delivered after a four-day trial.
Paulinus Iheanacho Okoronkwo, 58, also known as “Pollie,” operated a law practice in Koreatown focusing on immigration, family, and personal injury cases. He was found guilty of three counts of transactional money laundering, one count of tax evasion, and one count of obstruction of justice.
Prosecutors presented evidence that Okoronkwo held dual citizenship in the United States and Nigeria and served as general manager for the upstream division at the Nigerian National Petroleum Corp. (NNPC). In this position, he was responsible for overseeing development of Nigeria’s fossil fuel and natural gas reserves through partnerships with foreign companies.
In October 2015, Addax Petroleum—a subsidiary of Sinopec, China’s state-owned petroleum conglomerate—wired over $2.1 million to an Interest on Lawyers’ Trust Account (IOLTA) belonging to Okoronkwo’s Los Angeles law firm. The payment was described as compensation for consulting work related to negotiating drilling rights with NNPC. However, authorities said the engagement letter signed between Addax and Okoronkwo’s office used a fake address in Lagos and served to hide that the payment was actually a bribe intended to secure more favorable financial terms for Addax's operations in Nigeria.
According to court documents, Addax disguised the nature of the payment by listing it as legal fees, misled auditors about its purpose, and dismissed employees who questioned its legitimacy. Okoronkwo deposited the funds into his law firm’s IOLTA account to make it appear as client money.
In November 2017, nearly $1 million from these funds was used by Okoronkwo as a down payment on a house in Valencia. He did not report the $2.1 million on his 2015 federal income tax return. During an interview with investigators in June 2022, he denied using any part of the funds for purchasing property and claimed they were client funds rather than income.
United States District Judge John F. Walter set sentencing for December 1. Each illegal monetary transaction charge carries up to 10 years in prison; obstruction of justice also carries up to 10 years; tax evasion is punishable by up to five years. Okoronkwo remains free on $50,000 bond pending sentencing.
The investigation involved both the FBI and IRS Criminal Investigation units. The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs assisted with aspects of the case.
Assistant United States Attorneys Alexander B. Schwab (Deputy Chief of the Criminal Division), Nisha Chandran (Major Frauds Section), and Alexander Su (Asset Forfeiture and Recovery Section) are prosecuting.
