5th October, 2012
An Ikeja High Court presided over by Justice Habeeb Abiru, this morning ordered that the 10 new fuel subsidy thieves arraigned before it, be remanded in the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) custody pending the hearing of their bail application on 19 October, 2012.
Those arraigned today include: Anosyke Group of Companies Ltd, Ifeanyi Anosike, Dell Energy Ltd, Emeka Chukwu and Ngozi Ekeoma.
Others are Downstream Energy Sources Ltd, Alhaji Adamu Aliyu Maula, Rocky Energy Ltd, George Ogbonna and Emmanuel.
Anosyke Group of Companies, Ifeanyi Anosike, Dell Energy Limited, Emeka Chukwu and Ngozi Ekeoma were arraigned on an eight-count charge bordering on conspiracy to obtain by false pretence, forgery and altering documents to the tune of N1,537,278,880.82, being payments fraudulently received from the Petroleum Support Fund for the purported supply of 15, 000 metric tonnes of premium motor spirit.
Downstream Energy Sources Limited, Alhaji Adamu Aliyu Maula, Rocky Energy Limited, George Ogbonna and Emmanuel Morah were similarly arraigned on an eight-count charge bordering on conspiracy to obtain property by false pretence; conspiracy to forge documents, forgery and altering documents to the tune of N789,648,329.25, being payments fraudulently received from the Petroleum Support Fund for the purported supply of 14,273,0227 litres of premium motor spirit.
The EFCC alleged that all the defendants at various times forged different bills of laden for premium motor spirit, PMS, not supplied all, in a bid to claim the Federal Government subsidy on fuel.
All the suspects separately pleaded not guilty to the charges.
The court could not grant them bail as most of them had not filed any application before the court.
The court subsequently adjourned the matter till 19 October 2012 for hearing on bail.
—Henry Ojelu & Anthonia Ohiero