UK did not deport me – James Ibori reveals what really happened

- James Ibori has denied being deported from the UK

- The former governor said he returned to Nigeria on his own will

James Ibori has claimed that he was not deported by the United Kingdom government contrary to wide speculation when he returned to the country.

The former governor of Delta state was imprisoned for corruption related offences and was released in December 2016.

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Prior to his return to the country, Ibori appeared before a court for his forfeiture trial fueling speculation that he was forcefully evicted from the UK.

Daily Post reports that Ibori spoke through Tony Eluemunor who is his media assistant insisted that he was not deported but chose to return to Nigeria at his own time.

“Ibori wishes to correct the impression created by some news reports that he was deported from the UK. Even though I had wanted to publicise my return to Nigeria so that wrong meanings would not be read into the public interest.

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“I knew what my presence in Nigeria would elicit, and also because I never wanted any crowd that would gather because of me to disturb a single Nigerian in the course of their duties, all my efforts to keep the trip secret failed. The airline that brought me into Nigeria is public knowledge.

“So, it would be easy to verify that I was not deported because the deporting country’s officials would always hand over deportees to the Nigerian Immigration officials and documents would also be exchanged. Those who have chosen to report lies, and claim that I was deported know that no document exists anywhere in the world to back up those malicious claims.”