EFCC Arraigns Ponzi Scheme Director Precious Williams For Alleged N13.8 Billion Fraud In Port Harcourt

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Port Harcourt Zonal Directorate, has arraigned Precious Williams for her alleged involvement in a fraud and money laundering scheme.

Williams, who serves as the Director of Glossolalia Nigeria Ltd and Pelenged Nigeria Ltd, was arraigned on Monday, June 16, before Justice S.I. Mark at the Federal High Court in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.

Precious Williams was arraigned on a 14-count charge involving conspiracy, advance fee fraud, obtaining money under false pretences, and laundering proceeds of unlawful activity.

The charges are linked to a large-scale investment scam allegedly carried out between 2019 and 2020, involving MBA Trading and Capital Investment Limited (MBA TCIL) and its promoters.

According to the EFCC, Williams played a significant role in the transfer and concealment of illicit funds fraudulently collected from thousands of unsuspecting investors through deceptive high-yield investment schemes.

According to the EFCC, one of the charges reads: “That you, Precious Williams of Glossolalia Nigeria Limited; Pelegend Nigeria Limited, Phenom 413 Events Limited (company representative at large), and Doxasterz Oil and Gas Limited, sometime between the 24th day of August, 2019 and 15th day of February, 2020, at Port Harcourt, took possession of the sum of Ten Billion Naira (N10,000,000,000.00), from Maxwell Chizi Odum (still at large) and MBA Trading and Capital Investment Limited, when you reasonably ought to have known that the said funds formed part of the proceeds of unlawful activities under the pretext that it was for investment purposes that would yield 10% to 15% interest per month.”

One of the charges alleges that Precious Williams, through the account of Pelegend Nigeria Ltd with Polaris Bank, received a total of N1.005 billion from MBA TCIL between December 2019 and November 2020—funds suspected to be proceeds of fraudulently obtained investments.

The EFCC asserts that Williams should have reasonably known that the funds were tied to the fraudulent activities of Maxwell Chizi Odum, the founder of MBA TCIL, who remains at large. The funds were reportedly siphoned from over 3,000 victims across Nigeria.

Williams pleaded “not guilty” to all the charges.

Prosecution counsel E.K. Bakam requested a trial date and urged the court to remand Precious Williams in custody pending the determination of her bail application.

However, Williams’ counsel, Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) Tochukwu Maduka, informed the court that a bail application had already been filed and appealed for her release to allow for proper trial preparation.

Bakam opposed the request, arguing that the application was premature, having been submitted before the amended charges were served and before her formal arraignment. He called on the court to require a new bail application.

In his ruling, Justice S.I. Mark ordered that Williams be remanded at the Port Harcourt Correctional Centre and adjourned the matter to June 17, 2025, for the hearing of the bail application.

The EFCC stated that the charges stemmed from multiple petitions by victims who claimed they were misled by Williams and MBA TCIL into investing in a scheme that promised monthly returns of 10% to 15%. The funds, amounting to billions of naira, were allegedly diverted without delivering the promised returns or refunding investors’ capital.

Investigators reportedly traced a substantial portion of the laundered money through corporate accounts under Williams’ control, with no evidence of legitimate investment activities.

She was arrested in April 2021 after growing complaints from investors, many of whom were drawn in by aggressive advertising and endorsements on social media and through offline channels.