Prince Harry and his wife Meghan Markle have denied any association with the owner of a commercial airline in Nigeria, Allen Onyema, an alleged fugitive wanted in the United States.
POLITICS NIGERIA reports that the couple’s visit was organized in relation to Prince Harry’s position as founder and patron of the Invictus Games Foundation, which provides support to wounded, injured, and sick service members, including both active duty personnel and veterans.
Notably, Nigeria became the first African country to join the Invictus “Community of Nations” in 2022.
The visit to Nigeria in April was to honour an invitation by Chief of Defence Staff Christopher Musa.
It has been learnt that the visit is not linked to Onyema, who provided his aeroplane for their tour. The clarification comes after British media linked the couple’s visit to Onyema
Sources close to the couple clarified that their visit was unrelated to Onyema, who faces money-laundering allegations in the US. They said that Air Peace, a leading airline in Nigeria and West Africa, regularly flies commercial planes to the UK’s Gatwick airport, and downplayed any perceived connection between the couple and Onyema.
Throughout the visit, the couple received preferential treatment due to their royal status. Air Peace provided complimentary chartered flights, and the couple was given exclusive treatment on board.
“The planes were chartered. It was just the royals and their entourage. They were not flying with other passengers. We understand that they are royals so we gave them top-tier treatment on board,” Stanley Olisa, a communications lead at Air Peace said in May.
