Court Jails Two Oil Thieves In Port Harcourt.
Justice P. I. Ajoku of the Federal High Court sitting in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, has convicted and sentenced two oil thieves to two years imprisonment each, for dealing in petroleum products without an appropriate license.
The convicts: Uba Promise and Ikechukwu Christian were convicted on Tuesday, November 23, 2021, after pleading “guilty” to one count separate charge preferred against them by the Port Harcourt Zonal Command of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC.
The lone count charge read: “That you Uba Promise and Ekele Ekibor (still at large) on or about the 1st day of August, 2021 at Nigeria Port Authority, Onne, Port Harcourt, Rivers State within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court without lawful authority to deal in petroleum products, dealt in forty five thousand litres of Automotive Gas Oil (AGO), laden in a Mark Tanker Truck with registration number: Lagos KEK 166 XA and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 1 (17) (a) of the Miscellaneous Offences Act, Cap M17, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004 and punishable under Section 1(17) (b) of the same Act.
“That you Ikechukwu Christian on or about the 1st day of August, 2021 at Nigeria Port Authority, Onne, Port Harcourt Rivers State within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court without lawful authority to deal in petroleum product, dealt in forty five thousand litres of Automotive Gas Oil( AGO) laden in a Mark Tanker Truck with registration number: Lagos KEK 166 XA and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 1 (17) (a) of the Miscellaneous Offences Act, Cap M17, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004 and punishable under Section 1(17) (b) of the same Act”.
They both pleaded guilty when the charge was read to them.
In view of the pleas of the defendants, prosecution counsel: S. A. Kyenge, prayed the court to convict and sentence them accordingly.
Defence counsel, Innocent Nwakpudolu, however, prayed the court to temper justice with mercy, stressing that, “they are first -time offenders and do not have previous criminal records. In addition, they are heads of their respective families”.
Justice Ajoku convicted and sentenced the defendants to two years imprisonment each, with different options of fine of Two Hundred Thousand Naira (N200,000.00) and Three Hundred and Fifty Thousand Naira (N350,000.00) respectively, which is to be paid into the Consolidated Revenue Account of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
The court also ordered that, the 45,000 Automotive Gas Oil arrested with the convicts be forfeited to the Federal Government of Nigeria. The product shall be sold by the EFCC and the proceeds paid into the Recovery Account of the Commission. The Judge also ordered the release of the Mark Tanker Truck with registration number (Lagos SEK 166 XA) to the owner. This is in addition to an order that the convicts should sign an undertaking of good behaviours with the court.
The convicts were arrested on August 1, 2021 by operatives of the EFCC at the Nigeria Port Authority (NPA) Onne, Port Harcourt, Rivers for suspicious dealing in petroleum products without an appropriate license.
…EFCC Secures Thirteen Convictions in Ibadan, Oshogbo
The Ibadan Zonal Command of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, on Monday, November 22, 2021 secured thirteen convictions before different Justices of the Federal and State High Courts in Ibadan and Osogbo, the capital city of Oyo and Osun State.
The convicts are Abiodun Babatunde Sowunmi, Adeyemi Babatunde Hammed, Abeeb Abiola Badmus, Adebayo Akorede Saheed, Ganiyu Qudus Olawale and Omolade Ayemidotun Moses. Others are Taofeeq Toheeb Atanda, Oyekanmi Qudus Oyewale, Alabi Ifeoluwa Olamide, B.T.D Multi global Limited, Adewuyi Adetoun, Owolabi Toheeb Tolulope and Taiwo Shedrack Akpoyen.
The convicts were prosecuted on separate charges.
Justice Uche Agomoh of Federal High Court , Ibadan, found Sowunmi, Olawale, Omolade and Badmus guilty of offence of impersonation contrary to Section 22 (2)(b)(1) Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, Etc) Act, 2015 and punishable under Section 22 (2)(b) of the same Act.
While, Sowunmi and Olawale were sentenced to ten months imprisonment each, Omolade and Badmus bagged nine and six months imprisonment each.
Similarly, Justice Ladiran Akintola of the Oyo State High Court , Ibadan, convicted Alabi, Atanda, Oyekanmi, Adeyemi and Adebayo on separate charges of obtaining property by false pretence contrary to Section 419 of the Criminal Code Cap 38 Laws of Oyo State, 2000.
The judge sentenced Alabi to a term of three months community service, while Atanda, Adeyemi, Adebayo and Oyekanmi bagged two months community service each.
In the same vein, Justice Nathaniel Ayo-Emmanuel of Federal High Court sitting in Oshogbo found B.T.D Multiglobal Limited guilty of counts 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7 preferred against them by the EFCC.
Trouble started sometimes in December 2017 when the Commission received a petition alleging B.T.D Multiglobal Limited and Adewumi fraudulent misappropriated N1billion, received about 8,000 investors.
The court, while ordering the revocation of the certificate of incorporation of the company, ordered that the Corporate Affairs Commission should windup the company. According to the judge, ‘the proceeds therefrom as well as the sum of N32million recovered in the course of investigation should be used to pay the investors’.
The judge also found Adewuyi, who claimed to be 20 years-old and a student of Federal University of Technology; Akure as at the time the offence was committed guilty of count 1 and 2 and imposed a prison term of three years on each of the two counts, to run concurrently.
In the same token, Justice Ayo-Emmanuel sentenced Akpoyen to ten months imprisonment over fraudulent impersonation, while ordering a prison term of six year on Owolabi for impersonation and possession of documents.
The convicts are to restitute their various victims and forfeit the items recovered from them to the Federal Government.
Source: efccnigeria.org
