A 53-year-old British-Nigerian art dealer, Oghenochuko “Ochuko” Ojiri, has pleaded guilty in a terrorism financing case for failing to report a series of high-value art sales to a man sanctioned over alleged links to Hezbollah.
Ojiri, who was arraigned following police investigations and the approval of the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), admitted to eight counts of failing to disclose business transactions within the regulated sector, contrary to Section 21A of the Terrorism Act 2000.
During his trial at Westminster Magistrates’ Court in the United Kingdom, Prosecutor Lyndon Harris revealed that Ojiri sold artwork worth approximately £140,000 to Nazem Ahmad, a known financier of Hezbollah.
“At the time of the transactions, Mr Ojiri knew Mr Ahmad had been sanctioned in the US. Mr Ojiri accessed news reports about Mr Ahmad’s designation and engaged in discussions with others about it.
“There is one discussion where Mr Ojiri is party to a conversation in which it is apparent that a lot of people had known for years about his terrorism links,” Harris told the court.
According to the prosecutor, Ojiri, founder of Ramp Gallery, now operating as Ojiri Gallery in East London, dealt directly with Ahmad, negotiated the sales, and even congratulated him on the purchases.
The prosecution also argued that, at the time of the transactions, there was ample online information connecting Ahmad to the “blood diamond” trade, a term referring to diamonds used to fund armed conflict and insurgencies.
After reviewing the evidence presented, Judge Briony Clarke granted Ojiri bail ahead of sentencing, following a plea from his barrister who argued that he was not a flight risk.
“The fact that he is here, he has left the UK and has always returned, knowing he may be charged with offences, he will be here on the next occasion,” Ojiri’s legal representative told the court.
Meanwhile, the court has scheduled Ojiri’s sentencing for June 6.
Ojiri’s legal troubles date back to between October 2020 and December 2021, when he sold high-value artwork to Ahmad, who had already been sanctioned by the UK government.
As part of the sanctions, Ahmad’s assets were frozen, and UK nationals were banned from conducting business with him or his companies due to his alleged ties to Hezbollah, a Shia Muslim political group in Lebanon that has been designated a terrorist organisation by countries including the UK and the US.
