British-Nigerian art expert Oghenochuko ‘Ochuko’ Ojiri, known for his appearances on the BBC programme Bargain Hunt, has pleaded guilty in a terrorism financing case for failing to report a series of high-value art sales to a sanctioned individual.
Ojiri, 53, admitted to eight counts of failing to make a disclosure in the course of business under the Terrorism Act 2000, marking the first prosecution of its kind in the United Kingdom under that section of the law.
At a hearing on Friday at Westminster Magistrates’ Court, prosecutors revealed that between October 2020 and December 2021, Ojiri sold artworks worth £140,000 to Nazem Ahmad, a man accused by both US and UK authorities of financing the Lebanon-based proscribed group Hezbollah.
Prosecuting counsel Lyndon Harris told the court that Ojiri was aware of Ahmad’s sanctioned status, citing his involvement in conversations and media reports that highlighted Ahmad’s alleged ties to terrorism.
“There is one discussion where Ojiri is party to a conversation where it is apparent a lot of people have known for years about [Ahmad’s] terrorism links,” Harris said.
Despite hiring a third party to provide compliance advice, Harris noted that the guidance was not properly implemented. Ojiri was said to have directly negotiated with Ahmad and congratulated him on his purchases.
Ahmad was sanctioned by the United States in 2019 and later by the UK in 2023, with the British government imposing asset freezes and prohibiting any business dealings with him. Authorities said Ahmad held an “extensive art collection in the UK” and had transactions with “multiple UK-based artists, art galleries and auction houses.”
Ojiri’s gallery, formerly known as Ramp Gallery and now operating as the Ojiri Gallery in east London, was the venue for the transactions in question.
