Lagos Court Sentences Two Oil Marketers to 14 Years for N2.2 Billion Subsidy Fraud

Justice Mojisola Dada of the Special Offences Court in Ikeja, Lagos, sentenced oil marketers Mamman Nasir Ali and Christian Taylor to 14 years imprisonment each on Tuesday for their involvement in a N2.2 billion oil subsidy fraud.

The pair were convicted after being re-arraigned alongside their company, Nasaman Oil Services Limited, on an amended 57-count charge based on new evidence.

These charges expanded on an earlier 49-count charge that included conspiracy to obtain money by false pretence, forgery, and the use of falsified documents.

One of the counts reads: “Nasaman Oil Services Ltd, Mamman Nasir Ali, Christian Taylor, Oluwaseun Ogunbambo (now at large) and Olabisi Abdul-Afeez (still at large), on or about the 9th day of November 2011 at Lagos, within the Ikeja Judicial Division, with intent to defraud, conspired to obtain the sum of N749,991,273.36 (Seven Hundred and Forty-Nine Million, Nine Hundred and Ninety-One Thousand, Two Hundred and Seventy-Three Naira Thirty-six Kobo) from the Federal Government of Nigeria by falsely claiming that the sum of N749,991,273.36 represented subsidy accruing to Nasaman Oil Services Ltd under the Petroleum Support Fund for the importation of 10,031,986 litres of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), which Nasaman Oil Services Ltd purported to have purchased from SEATAC Petroleum Ltd of British Virgin Islands and imported into Nigeria through MT Liquid Fortune Ltd Ex MT Overseas Lima, which representation you knew to be false.”

Although Mamman Nasir Ali and Christian Taylor pleaded not guilty to all charges, the court found the prosecution’s case, led by Seiduh Atteh, compelling, supported by numerous witness testimonies and documentary evidence presented during the trial.

The defendants were initially tried before Justice Adeniyi Onigbanjo, who later withdrew from the case, which was then reassigned to Justice Mojisola Dada.

In her ruling, Justice Dada stated that the defendants’ fraudulent activities caused significant financial loss to the government and undermined public confidence in the country’s oil subsidy system. As a result, the court sentenced each defendant to 14 years imprisonment and ordered the forfeiture of specific assets and bank accounts linked to the fraud proceeds.

Additionally, Justice Dada issued arrest warrants for two co-accused, Oluwaseun Ogunbambo and Olabisi Abdul-Afeez, who remain at large.

These convictions conclude a prolonged legal process initiated by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), which charged the accused with fraudulently obtaining N1,480,074,125.61 by falsely claiming to have imported 20,492,982.50 litres of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) into Nigeria. The court found them guilty, convicted, and sentenced them accordingly.