Chairman of Atlantic Energy Drilling Concepts Nigeria Limited, Jide Omokore, has been cleared of fraud by an Abuja High Court on Tuesday.
According to The PUNCH, Omokore, who is an ally of former Minister of Petroleum, Diezani Alison-Madueke, was accused of falsely obtaining over 7, 551, 867 barrels of crude oil (Brass blend) valued at the sum of US$ 823, 075, from the Federal Government.
It was gathered that he was initially arraigned in 2016 by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.
He was charged with 15 counts of fraud alongside Victor Briggs, Abiye Membere, and David Mbanefo.
The trio was accused of fraudulently diverting roughly $1.6 billion from the Federal Government’s revenues of sales of petroleum products, and they were arraigned before Justice Nnamdi Dimgba.
One of the charge against the defendants, read: “That you, Olajide Jones Omokore, Atlantic Energy Brass Development Ltd, Atlantic Energy Drilling Concepts Ltd and Kolawole Akanni Aluko (now at large) between May 2013 and March 2014, within the jurisdiction of this honourable court obtained by false pretence and with intent to defraud 7, 551, 867 barrels of crude oil (Brass blend) valued at the sum of US$ 823, 075, 189.95 from Nigerian Petroleum Development Company, Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation and the Federal Government of Nigeria on the false pretence that you had funds (both local and foreign) necessary to support the Nigerian Petroleum Company Ltd in Petroleum operation for the OML 60, 61, 62 and 63 and you thereby committed an offence, contrary to Section 1 (a) of the Advance Fee Fraud and other fraud related offences Act CAP A6 2010 Laws of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and punishable under Section 1 (3) of the same Act.”
While delivering its verdict, the presiding judge, Justice Dimgba ruled that the EFCC failed to demonstrate elements of crime in the 15-count indictment it filed against the defendants through credible evidence.
He held that evidence presented before the court by the prosecution’s witnesses, including the former Group Managing Director of the NNPC, Mr. Andrew Yakubu, indicated that the defendants’ trial was simply a case of “poor business relationships.”
The court stated that there was no evidence to link the defendants to the allegations of fraud, inducement, obtaining by false pretense, conspiracy, or money laundering, and that, contrary to the EFCC’s allegation, the SAA was a valid contract entered into voluntarily by the parties with the first to third defendants in 2012, with the goal of improving oil sector achievements.
It determined that evidence established Omokore and his enterprises had prior business links with both the NPDC and the NNPC.
Furthermore, the court ruled that the EFCC did not refute Omokore’s claim that the NNPC approached him about his technical assets.
