A United States federal court has ordered Nigerian businessman Dozy Mmobuosi, who made headlines last year for his bid to acquire the English football club Sheffield United, to pay more than $250 million in fines. The court has also barred him from serving as a director of any public company.
The ruling comes after the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) charged Dozy Mmobuosi and three of his companies, including two listed on the Nasdaq, with fraud, according to the Financial Times.
The SEC accused Mmobuosi of inflating the financial performance metrics of his companies and their key subsidiaries in a scheme to deceive investors worldwide.
Judge Jesse M. Furman of the US District Court for the Southern District of New York issued a final judgment by default against Dozy Mmobuosi and his companies after they failed to respond to the civil complaint filed by the SEC in December.
The court found that Mmobuosi and his companies, Tingo Group, Agri-Fintech Holdings, and Tingo International Holdings, did not “answer, plead, or otherwise defend” themselves in the case.
The SEC had alleged that Dozy Mmobuosi’s business empire was essentially a “fiction,” leading to the hefty financial penalties imposed by the court. The case underscores the ongoing crackdown on corporate fraud and the importance of transparency and accountability in the global financial markets.
