Delta Court Sends 10 Men To Prison Over Illegal Oil Trade
LAGOS NOVEMBER 8TH (URHOBOTODAY)-Ten men in Warri, Delta State, have been convicted and sentenced to jail for illegal dealing in petroleum products.
According to a statement posted on its X account on Friday, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission said Justice H. A. Nganjiwa of the Federal High Court in Warri, Delta State, handed down the sentences.
The convicts are James Terry, Gift Godfrey, Obidi Obi, Anthony Edekobi and Victor Sule.
Others are Jubril Abubakar, Auwal Aliyu, Nnaemeka Nwobodo, Victor Edem and Sunday Eyere.
The convicts were arraigned on a one-count charge of criminal conspiracy and illegal dealing in petroleum products by the Benin Zonal Directorate of the EFCC.
The statement read, “The charge against Victor Edem Udo reads, ‘That you, Victor Edem Udo (m), on or about the 8th day of August 2026, at Koko, Warri North Local Government Area of Delta State, within the jurisdiction of this honourable court, did deal in petroleum products, Automotive Gas Oil, which is not of the quality expected of the product and thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 1(18)(a)(ii) of the Miscellaneous Offences Act, Cap. M17, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria (Revised Edition), 2004.’
“Upon arraignment, all the defendants pleaded guilty to their charges, prompting the prosecution counsel, Francis Jirbo, to pray the court to convict and sentence them accordingly.
“Justice Nganjiwa convicted and sentenced James Terry and Gift Ezewu Godfrey to two years’ imprisonment or a fine of N300,000. Obidi Peter Obi, Victor Ataria Sule, Jubril Abubakar, Auwal Aliyu, Nnaemeka Nwobodo and Victor Edem were sentenced to three years’ imprisonment each or a fine of N300,000 each.”
According to the EFCC, Eyere was sentenced to three years’ imprisonment or a fine of N400,000, while Edekobi was sentenced to three years’ imprisonment or a fine of N350,000.
“The convicts’ road to the correctional centre began following their arrest based on intelligence from the Office of the National Security Adviser about their suspicious activities in Koko, Delta State. They were thereafter prosecuted and convicted,” the statement added.
Under the Miscellaneous Offences Act, dealing in substandard or adulterated petroleum products is a criminal offence punishable by prosecution by agencies such as the EFCC and imprisonment or fines.
Punch
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