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Sep. 3, 2025

Los Angeles lawyer convicted in $2.1M Nigerian oil bribery case

Paulinus Iheanacho "Pollie" Okoronkwo was found guilty of money laundering, tax evasion, and obstruction of justice for his role in a $2.1 million bribery scheme involving Nigeria's state-owned oil company and a Sinopec subsidiary. He faces sentencing in December.

A federal jury on Thursday convicted Los Angeles attorney Paulinus Iheanacho "Pollie" Okoronkwo, 58, in connection with a $2.1 million bribery and money-laundering scheme involving Nigeria's state-owned petroleum company and a subsidiary of China's Sinopec.

Okoronkwo, a dual U.S.-Nigerian citizen, practiced law in Koreatown while also serving as general manager of NNPC's upstream division, a role that created a conflict with his fiduciary duty to Nigeria. He...

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