London art dealer charged with terrorist financing offences

An art dealer in London has been charged with offences relating to terrorist financing. The dealer, Oghenochuko Ojiri, has been accused by the Metropolitan Police of failing to make a disclosure during business within the regulated sector. It is a violation of section 21A of the Terrorism Act 2000. Ojiri is the first person charged with this specific offence. The charges relate to a period from late 2020 to the end of 2021 and were authorised by the Crown Prosecution Service. The investigation was conducted by the Metropolitan Police’s National Terrorist Financial Investigation Unit (NTFIU) in cooperation with the Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI) of the Treasury, the HMRC (the organisation that regulates the art sector), and the Met’s Arts & Antiques Unit.