Tag: Cullinan Private Jet Corp

How Nairobi Private Jet Hiring Firm Was Used To Defraud American Millions

Asset Recovery Agency (ARA) has demonstrated how funds linked to a private jet hiring firm were wired into the country raising alarm of money laundering claims.

Through agency investigator Alfred Musalia, the agency said in documents filed in court the funds were wired by a man from the USA.

“Unless this court grants the orders sought, the respondents and the interested party shall illegitimately enjoy the economic advantage derived from the commission of crimes and acquisition of proceeds of crime or profits and benefits of crime,” investigator told the court.

According to the investigator, the statement of Fletcher demonstrates the manner in which the company fraudulently obtained the funds in issue from him without delivering goods or rendering any service to him.

Musalia said investigations have established that the funds are proceeds of crime which should be forfeited to the state.

Contrary to the assertions by Cullinan Private Jets Corp Limited and Glo Jets International Limited, the officer said ARA has established that the funds in issue were fraudulently obtained from Rondell Maurice Fletcher, a citizen of the USA.

“I established that the said Rondell Maurice Fletcher deposited a total of USD 400,000 into his Mazuma Holdings Account number 6897943574 held at Wells Fargo USA,” Musalia said in an affidavit.

The investigator said a total of USD 412,746. 55 was then transferred from Mazuma Holdings Account number 6897943574 held at Wells Fargo USA to Cullinan Private JET USA Account number 9984784992 held at Wells Fargo USA.

He also established that a total of USD 333, 718.35 which is part of funds in issue was sent from Cullinan Private JET USA Account number 9984784992 held at Wells Fargo USA to Cullinan Private Jets Corp Limited Account number 01904057361250 held at I&M Bank.

“The funds were subsequently utilized by the Respondent for various purposes which are not the intended purpose safe for the amount preserved,” he added.

The agency was responding to the company documents filed in court in which ARA applied for the account to be freezed pending forfeiture proceedings.

The court has already freezed the the two exclusive jet companies accounts.

Application dismissed

Cullinan Private Jet Corp, an alleged subsidiary of a company registered in Miami and Glo-Jet International limited, a subsidiary of a company registered in the state of Florida, wanted the order freezing its bank accounts in Kenya lifted.

High Court Judge Esther Maina dismissed the application by the owners of the two firms linked to US based companies for lack of merit.

In her 31 page ruling , Judge Maina observed that the two companies annexed copies of cheques drawn to third parties which they claimed were dishonoured as a result of the freeze and demand letters from third parties threatening to sue for not meeting their financial obligations.

Cullinan Private Jet Corp

Justice Maina added that the companies have also not demonstrated that their suppliers and employees were being paid from the four accounts that are affected by the preservation order.

Moreover, the two private jet companies claim to be subsidiaries of global multi-billion dollar companies with operations in 47 countries in different parts of the world and which have financial muscle to support the Kenyan entities, added the judge.

The two companies sotught to lift the order obtained by Asset Recovery Agency freezing its accounts pending forfeiture proceedings.

The bank accounts included four dollar and Kenya shilling accounts belonging to Cullinan Private jets Corp limited and Glo-jet International ltd.

The judge prohibited the operators or their agents or representatives from transacting, withdrawing, transferring, using and any other dealing with the money in the bank accounts.

The Bank accounts includes USD 54, 257.85 , Sh 696,070.70 held in Account Number 01904057366250registered in the name of Cullinan Private Jets Corp Limited held at I & M Bank and USD 24,712.61 held in Account Number 6658001882 in the name of Glo Jet International Limited and Sh.1,134,691.33 held in Account number 6658001881 in the of Glo Jet International Limited held at Ecobank Limited.

ARA told the court on 25th August 2023 the Agency received information that the above accounts are holding funds suspected to be proceeds of criminal activities and money laundering.

Subsequently the Agency opened an Inquiry file to investigate the legitimacy, source and destination of the funds for the purpose of ascertaining whether the same was acquired from or is a profits or benefits of proceeds of crime or intended for the commission of crime.

According to ARA court documents, financial investigations conducted by the Agency revealed complex fraud and money laundering schemes conducted by the Cullinan Private Jets Corp Ltd and Glo-jet International ltd their directors and associates rendering the above funds proceeds of crime liable for preservation and forfeiture.

The said bank accounts received suspicious huge cash deposits from various suspicious sources and investigations established that there are reasonable grounds to believe that the funds in issue are obtained through illegitimate means.

“The investigations have revealed that the cash deposits were unlawfully acquired hence proceeds of crime pursuant to the Provisions of Proceeds of Crime and Anti-Money Laundering Act and investigations further established that the funds were obtained from various suspicious sources and spent/dispersed through suspicious activities and transactions in a classical money laundering schemes,” Agency told the court.

April 27, 2024
Court Declines Request To Suspend Orders Freezing Funds Linked To US Linked Jet Leasing Firms

Proprietors of two exclusive private jet companies have suffered a major blow after failing to convince a judge to suspend orders freezing its bank accounts, which were restricted over claims of money laundering.

High Court Judge Esther Maina dismissed the application by the owners of the two firms linked to US based companies for lack of merit.

Cullinan Private Jet Corp, an alleged subsidiary of a company registered in Miami and Glo-Jet International limited, a subsidiary of a company registered in the state of Florida, wanted the order freezing its bank accounts in Kenya lifted.

“The Notice of Motion dated 28th September 2023 is hereby dismissed for lack of merits,” ruled justice Maina of the anti-corruption Division of the High Court.

In her ruling, the judge found that the two executive private jet companies failed to prove that the preservation orders was making it difficult to meet its expenses.

The Judge dismissed arguments by the two private jet companies that a preservation order may not be varied or rescinded if there is a forfeiture application which is yet to be determined.

The judge added that a preservation order is valid for 90 days from the date of its gazettement unless a forfeiture application is filed in which case the preservation persists until the forfeiture application is heard and determined.

“In my considered view an intended but yet to be filed forfeiture application cannot be a bar to an application for variation or setting aside of a preservation order and this issue must therefore be answered in the negative,” ruled the judge.

In her 31 page ruling , Judge Maina observed that the two companies annexed copies of cheques drawn to third parties which they claimed were dishonoured as a result of the freeze and demand letters from third parties threatening to sue for not meeting their financial obligations.

The firms had also alleged that some of their staff have handed in their resignation letters due to non-payment of their salaries and the companies were undergoing financial hardship which was threatening to cripple their operations.

“The question would then be whether inability to pay salaries and debts due to financial hardship falls within the definition of “reasonable living expenses” as envisaged in Section 89 (1) (a) (i) of the POCAMLA,” the judge said.

“It is therefore clear to me that the living expenses envisaged in Section 89 (1) are the personal living expenses of the applicant a natural person, but not of a company. The deponents of the affidavits of the companies do not allude to any hardship suffered by themselves, or by the other directors of the two companies, personally,” noted the judge.

The judge added that the only claim is that the preservation order has exposed the companies’ operations to grave danger to the extent that the parent company has threatened to relocate to other countries.

“Even then no evidence was tendered that the cheques annexed to the affidavit were presented to the banks and were in fact dishonoured. There is also no evidence from any of the company’s creditors that indeed they are owed money by the two companies,” observed the judge.

The judge further stated that a dishonoured cheque would definitely have remarks to that effect from the bank to which it is presented and in this case there are no remarks to that effect.

Cheques, the judge noted, are generated internally and the mere fact of their having been drawn is not evidence that they were not honoured.

The judge further added that the preservation orders are in respect to four bank accounts and the two companies have not disclosed whether their companies run other accounts and there is no proof that their business operations have come to a halt since the preservation orders which affect only the four accounts needless to say were issued.

Justice Maina added that the companies have also not demonstrated that their suppliers and employees were being paid from the four accounts that are affected by the preservation order.

Moreover, the two private jet companies claim to be subsidiaries of global multi-billion dollar companies with operations in 47 countries in different parts of the world and which have financial muscle to support the Kenyan entities, added the judge.

“This in itself contradicts the allegation that the Respondents are likely to meet their financial obligations because of the preservation order. Indeed, they assert that should their assets in the preserved accounts be forfeited their parent company is capable of sustaining them,” said the judge.

The two companies sotught to lift the order obtained by Asset Recovery Agency freezing its accounts pending forfeiture proceedings.

The bank accounts included four dollar and Kenya shilling accounts belonging to Cullinan Private jets Corp limited and Glo-jet International ltd.

The judge prohibited the operators or their agents or representatives from transacting, withdrawing, transferring, using and any other dealing with the money in the bank accounts.

The Bank accounts includes USD 54, 257.85 , Sh 696,070.70 held in Account Number 01904057366250 registered in the name of Cullinan Private Jets Corp Limited held at I & M Bank and USD 24,712.61 held in Account Number 6658001882 in the name of Glo Jet International Limited and Sh.1,134,691.33 held in Account number 6658001881 in the of Glo Jet International Limited held at Ecobank Limited.

ARA told the court on 25th August 2023 the Agency received information that the above accounts are holding funds suspected to be proceeds of criminal activities and money laundering

Subsequently the Agency opened an Inquiry file to investigate the legitimacy, source and destination of the funds for the purpose of ascertaining whether the same was acquired from or is a profits or benefits of proceeds of crime or intended for the commission of crime.

According to ARA court documents, financial investigations conducted by the Agency revealed complex fraud and money laundering schemes conducted by the Cullinan Private Jets Corp Ltd and Glo-jet International ltd their directors and associates rendering the above funds proceeds of crime liable for preservation and forfeiture.

The said bank accounts received suspicious huge cash deposits from various suspicious sources and investigations established that there are reasonable grounds to believe that the funds in issue are obtained through illegitimate means.

“The investigations have revealed that the cash deposits were unlawfully acquired hence proceeds of crime pursuant to the Provisions of Proceeds of Crime and Anti-Money Laundering Act and investigations further established that the funds were obtained from various suspicious sources and spent/dispersed through suspicious activities and transactions in a classical money laundering schemes,” Agency told the court.

ARA further adds that the transactions in the present application arose from the same facts and money laundering schemes in which the Respondents, their agents and associates are the planner and beneficiary.

December 27, 2023
Kenyan Authorities Clears Two American Airlines Of Money Laundering Allegations

By Ken Ngurachgi

Two top highly rated United States of America (USA) registered Private JET Airlines, Cullinan Private JETS Corp and Glo-JET International Air have been cleared by the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) – Africa on Money Laundering probe after satisfactory verifiable documents were submitted by the airlines to The Law Enforcement Agencies.

On Wednesday, August 23, 2023, a transaction amounting to $ 50,000 (Fifty Thousand U.S Dollars) were wired from Cullinan JET Kenya Account at (I&M) to their sister Company – Global Jet International Air Account based at EcoBank Limited.

Due to strict Rules on Money Laundering Laws, I&M Bank Riverside Branch’s Relationship Manager – Ms. Reshma Patel questioned why funds were moving from one account to another – just a day after a substantive incoming TT Wire from an account of the U. S mother company (Cullinan Private JET USA) to the local Kenyan Company (Cullinan Private JET Kenya Limited) with an account resident at – I&M, Riverside Branch. She suspected that the same was possible money Laundering funds and therefore as required by the regulator of the banking sector in Kenya – Central Bank, Ms. Patel reported the matter to The Financial Reporting Centre (FRC) raising a concern over the $ 50,000 USD that was transferred from Cullinan Private JET I&M to Global JET Kenya Ecobank Accounts respectively. Cullinan and Global JET are companies with offices in the United States and Australia.

This prompted Asset Recover Agency (ARA) – a State Agency under Kenyan State Law Office to move to court on Friday, August 25, 2023, to obtain an immediate freeze order so as to commence their investigations, on the report submitted by Ms. Reshma Patel from I&M Bank Limited. The investigations have been on with Cullinan Private JET demanding that FBI from U. S be involved in the process since they never trusted the Kenyan investigative arm. They read malice in all the fiasco stating that the company handles Billions of U. S Dollars. They have been banking with the same bank ever since and wondering why they can raise an alarm, over a paltry $ 50,000.00

A Former FBI Agent – who is also aware of the probe, reiterated that Cullinan, being an American company cannot engage in such illicit trade and money laundering as alleged by I&M. The way the I&M Compliance report was drafted raises more questions than answers. “I suspect that I&M was annoyed that instead of keeping the funds with them, Cullinan Private JET moved the funds to a competitor bank – EcoBank. This is a case of a disgruntled wife not happy with a co-wife”, said Marco – who’s real name cannot be disclosed because he is not authorized by the agency to speak.

He Continued, “I don’t believe FRC, ARA and I&M. Something is truly a miss. Why would you freeze an account of an international company that controls Hundreds of Millions of Dollars in another Kenyan Bank (not I&M). When Cullinan decided to fund I&M from the U. S, and moves a small amount to EcoBank, that becomes a full-blown report with leading Media house writing a lot of filth and trash on a company that is in the league of Emirates. This is unacceptable. Cullinan JET should sue these guys. I mean look at this report from FRC.? This is an underwhelming orpington chicken fight. Not American at all. The FBI has now cleared the Company and gave them clean bill of health”, lamented Marco.

Document.

This news came as a relief to the Kenyan Charter Managing Director – Capt. Paul Stenberg since the International Board of Directors sitting in Sydney, Australia had resolved to shut down the Kenyan Operations and move the Regional Office for Africa to Johannesburg – South Africa.

“Look here Mr. Kuria. Media should report facts. We are a reputable Multi-Billion U. S Dollar Private JET Company with footprints in forty-seven (47) countries around the world. Our company is a member of the Meriton Group, yet another Fifty Year-(50)-Old Multi Billion U. S Dollar Real Estate Company located in Sydney, Australia. There is no way that our company can be involved in Money Laundering especially over a paltry $ 50,000 USD that is being reported by a section of the media here in Kenya. If anybody has doubt, e-mail me via: [email protected] ,” said Capt. Stenberg.

When asked about a Mr. Chris Obure, shareholding, he responded, “I also read, with utter shock, that one Kenyan Businessman – Mr. Chris Obure is an official representative of our companies in Kenya. This is false. The Registrar of companies (BRS) has the correct records at CR 12. Every Kenyan and the rest of the world can check for themselves the ownership of the companies. I don’t know this gentleman. He doesn’t work for this company. You are asking me to comment on a person that I don’t know. Out of my 213 employees here in East Africa, none goes by that name.”

Asked why certain journalists are mentioning Chris Obure as their main character in their recent articles, Mr. Stenberg responded, “That’s laughable. The story that appears on Nation and Business Daily, by one Richard Munguti, is disturbing. You see a lot of vendetta on this man – Chris Obure – who we have no association with. Mr. Munguti seems to have a personal grudge with Mr. Obure. He is now dragging Cullinan to that drama. All these moves make us doubt the writers professional IQ. He states horrendous things which are never associated with us. Has never been because we have a reputation to preserve. If doing business in Kenya is this hard, we’d rather close business and move to South Africa. That will knock down our worldwide continental spread to forty-six (46). Life will continue, nonetheless.”

Capt. Stenberg reported that Mr. Richard Munguti from Nation (Print Media) and other bloggers need to get their facts right. Not to engage in “theatrical razzmatazz and publishing scandalous demeaning underwhelming opaque articles. “How do you put a picture of a man standing with some Maybach glasses on and make him the boss of our company in Kenya? I mean, it’s a mockery. I can also bring Obama to stand at some market place in Kogelo, Siaya county and make him the area chief”, laughed Capt. Stenberg.

Cullinan Private JET Corp is now free to operate and continue doing business in Kenya. According to information from their website, the company is in the business of provision of highly VVIP Private Charter HIRE around the world. They handle both cargo and passenger charters globally. From our due diligence, Cullinan Private JET Corp is the only company in Africa that conducts thorough forensic verification on cargo shipments before issuing quotation. They have a Risk and Compliance (RC) Form 401 [a] that is always handed over to the customers to fill out so that they can take the same to Customs Department to verify the authenticity of bonded merchandise. The company also affirms and asserts that they don’t handle Cargo Clearance, export processing and the cargo. Their only encounter with the is after the goods are properly scanned by the owners to pave way for loading, once all the Export Documents have been submitted by the Customer to the Risk and Compliance Desk – at the loading BAY.

September 17, 2023