Celestine “Skip” Aniekwu, 65, of Sunrise, Florida, was sentenced on Thursday, November 21, 2024, to 16 months in prison for his involvement in a conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Aniekwu, who had been a fugitive for 15 years before surrendering earlier this year, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Rodney Smith at the top of the sentencing guidelines.
In 2008, Aniekwu, while involved with Gulf Building Corporation, conspired with undercover FBI agents posing as asset managers to arrange a scheme involving the bribery of public officials in the City of Miramar. According to court filings, Aniekwu told the agents that he needed to pay $150,000 in bribes to support Gulf Building’s bid for two major construction projects: the Ansin Sports Complex and the Miramar Regional Service Center.
Aniekwu and an officer of a subcontractor, a subsidiary of a publicly traded company, created false invoices for work that had never been performed. These fraudulent invoices allowed them to secure two checks totaling $50,000, which were cashed by the undercover agents at Aniekwu’s request. The cash was intended to pay the Miramar public officials to influence the bidding process.
The case was investigated by the FBI and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey N. Kaplan. U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe and Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey B. Veltri of the FBI’s Miami Field Office made the announcement.
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