August 9-19, 1986: Sultan of Brunei Donates $10 Million to Contras

Assistant Secretary of State Elliott Abrams meets with the Deputy Minister of Defense of Brunei, General Pengiran Haji Ibnu Ba’asith, to discuss a secret donation from the Sultan of Brunei to the Nicaraguan Contras (see After May 16, 1986). Ibnu was told earlier that an emissary from the US would call him using the pseudonym “Kenilworth.” Abrams calls Ibnu, using the false name, and meets with Ibnu in London. Ibnu oversees the donation of $10 million from the Sultan of Brunei’s Citibank account to a Swiss bank account in the Eaux Vives branch of the Credit Suisse bank, to account number 368430-22-1. But the money is deposited in the wrong account (see Late June, 1986). [Final Report of the Independent Counsel for Iran/Contra Matters: Chapter 25: United States v. Elliott Abrams: November 1986, 8/4/1993]