Man Lands In Prison Custody For N113.4m Oil Fraud

Man Lands In Prison Custody For N113.4m Oil Fraud

The Kaduna Zonal Office of EFCC on Thursday March 21, 2019 arraigned
one Nurudeen Musa Abdullahi before Justice P. Mallong of the Federa High
Court, sitting in Kaduna on a two-count charge bordering on conspiracy
and obtaining money by false pretence to the tune of N113,490,000 (One
Hundred and Thirteen Million Four Hundred and Ninety Thousand Naira).

Nurudeen, was a consultant/software developer with Sofftech Computer
Ltd, a company engaged by the Nigeria National Petroleum Company, NNPC,
to develop and manage its billing software, used in the lifting of
petroleum products in PPMC/ NNPC Depot, Kaduna.
The defendant was responsible for overseeing the running of the billing
software, taking care of any new report, training of NNPC staff and any
update that may be needed on price changes or depot operational changes
on behalf of the company.

Nurudeen was arrested by the EFCC, following a complaint made by
Bi-crude Products Limited, AL-Amin Emporium Limited, Alh Sa’adu Tsanyawa
Nigeria Limited, Sabag Oil and Gas Nigeria Limited and Dan Abdulkadir
Global Resources Limited, in which they alleged that they received
demand letters from the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC
sometime in 2018, requesting for the settlement of outstanding balance
of various sums being money for products their companies lifted from the
Kaduna Depot between 2008 and 2018 without payment.

They further alleged that the defendant conspired with others, now at large and used their companies’ names to defraud the NNPC.

One of the count charge reads: “that you Nurudeen Musa Abdullahi
sometime between 2011 and 2014 in Kaduna within the Kaduna Judicial
Division of the Federal High Court, did retain a total sum of
N113,490,000 (One Hundred and Thirteen Million Four Hundred and Ninety
Thousand Naira) in your account No. 2002932756, domiciled in First Bank
Plc, a sum which you knew or suspected to be proceeds of crime or
illegal activity to wit: criminal breach of trust and you thereby
committed an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 17(a) and
(b) of the Money Laundering Prohibition Act 2011 ( as amended in 2012).”

The accused pleaded not guilty to the charges. Following the no
guilty plea, counsel to the Commission, J.Saidi urged the court to fix a
date for commencement of trial as well as prayed that the accused be
remanded in prison custody, while counsel to the defendant Adebola
Fashola prayed the court to grant his client bail.

After listening to both counsels, Justice Mallong ordered the accused
to be remanded in prison custody and adjourned the matter to April 10,
2019 for hearing.