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The incumbent leader is suspected of diverting about $ 2.2 billion from the central bank of Nigeria
More than $ 267 million belonging to a former Nigerian dictator was seized from a Jersey bank account.
The money was "derived from corruption" during the presidency of Sani Abacha in the 1990s, according to the Jersey Civil Asset Recovery Fund.
A front company called Doraville held the funds, which were frozen in 2014.
After a five-year court quarrel, the funds have now been recovered and will be divided between Jersey, the United States and Nigeria.
Attorney General of Jersey, Robert McRae QC, said the seizure "has demonstrated [Jersey’s] commitment to fight international financial crime and money laundering ".
Mr. Abacha was in power from 1993 to his death in 1998.
We do not know yet how much money each government will keep.
Jersey's legal department declined to comment on the final distribution of funds as it could "hinder ongoing discussions".
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JEAN-PHILIPPE KSIAZEK / AFP / GETTY Pictures
Sani Abacha met with former Pope John Paul II in March 1998, shortly before his death.
The Jersey government said it contacted the United States in 2007 to demand that US money laundering lawsuits be filed in US courts.
The United States Department of Justice has itself lost millions of dollars in Nigeria. Mr. Abacha and his badociates laundered funds through the US banking sector.
Following a "broad" collection of evidence in various international jurisdictions, the funds were frozen by the Royal Court in 2014 and finally paid into the Civil Asset Recovery Fund on May 31st. .
This money represents only a fraction of the billions of dollars that would have been stolen and laundered under the presidency of Mr. Abacha.
Last year, the Swiss authorities returned the Nigerian government $ 300 million (£ 228 million), after the latter had been stolen from public funds.
This money will be reimbursed to 300,000 Nigerian households over the next six years.
A spokesman for Jersey's legal department said that he had been faced with "disputes and appeals" up to the highest court in Jersey, as well as "separate proceedings" by a third party in a US court.
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