LAGOS, June 21 (Xinhuanet) -- Nigeria's late military president Sani Abacha, one of the world's most corrupt leaders, laundered about 1.3 billion US dollars through UK banks, according to the head of a British anti-corruption agency.

    The money, however, might not be easily repatriated to Nigeria because of a civil suit and a court order, said Simon Regis of the British Central Authority for Organized Crimes and International Directorate at the Home Office.

    "In terms of Abacha money ... what was discovered was that at least 1.3 billion dollars was laundered through the UK," Nigerian newspapers quoted Regis as saying Tuesday.

    Regis, who is in Nigeria to train the west African nation's anti-corruption officials, pointed out that appropriate Nigerian ministries were aware of this and that they could throw more light on the issue.

    Abacha, the head of state from 1993 until he died in 1998, was believed to have stolen more than 3 billion dollars and kept in various bank accounts in Europe.

    President Olusegun Obasanjo has been making efforts to get Abacha loot repatriated since he took office in 1999 and the latest of such efforts is the 500 million dollars which the Switzerland Supreme Court has ordered repatriated to Nigeria. Enditem