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Supreme Court Reserves Judgment On N3.5bn Paris Club Fraud

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The Supreme Court of Nigeria has reserved judgment in an appeal on the final forfeiture of the sum of N1.2bn, brought before it by Melrose General Services Limited, until June 7, 2024.

The appellant is challenging the judgment of the Court of Appeal in May 2019, ordering the forfeiture of the sum, being proceeds of unlawful activity in the Paris Club fund, involving Melrose General Services Limited.

This was made known in a statement by the EFCC’s Head of Media and Publicity, Dele Oyewale, on Thursday.

Counsel for the appellant, Kehinde Ogunwumiji, while informing the apex court of a motion seeking the setting aside of the judgment of the Court of Appeal, noted that the money involved in the forfeiture suit was not a proceed of any unlawful activity, but payment for a contractual and consultancy agreement.

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Counsel for the EFCC however, informed the court of his counter-affidavit dated March 11, 2024, praying the court to adopt his brief of argument and dismiss the appeal of the appellant.

The statement reads in part “My Lords, we seek the leave of your noble Lordships to undertake a brief overview of the concept of forfeiture granted by the two courts below in a bid to drive home the 1st respondent`s case.
There are generally two types of forfeitures used to recover the proceeds and instrumentalities of crimes. They share the same objective, namely the forfeiture of the state of the proceeds and instrumentalities of crime. Both share common two-fold rationales.”

Arguing further, he stressed that, “Recall that appellant filed his notice of appeal against the well-considered judgment of the Federal High Court which was equally dismissed by the Court of Appeal on May 31, 2019, having found that the appellant failed to show that the said funds are not proceeds of crime.

“Further to the background of the matter, the EFCC carried out investigations which revealed among others, that the sum of N3.5bn was fraudulently paid to the appellant to carry out a consultancy job for the Nigerian Governors Forum, NGF, under the guise that the appellant carried out a consultancy job for the NGF entitling it to the money when it did not do any such work. The appellant made several withdrawals within a short time leaving N1,222,384,857.84 before the EFCC intervened.

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“Further investigation led to the recovery of an additional sum of N220m which the appellant had paid to WASP Networks Ltd and Thebe Wellness Services”.

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Joint Security Patrol Team wastes Kidnapper in gun duel along Enugu/Ukwu Road

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By Kayode Sanni-Arewa

The Joint Security Patrol team led by the Anambra state police command has neutralized a notorious suspected kidnapper along the Enugu/Ukwu road .

The operation according to the state police command spokesperson Tochukwu Ikenga was carried out with local vigilante group who identified the suspect before he was chased and engaged in an exchange before he was neutralized.

The joint security patrol team was said to have responded to a distress call of the planned attack by the gang members of the suspect, before acting swiftly to the scene and engaged them, which led to some of the gang members escaping with bullet wounds.

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One AK 47 rifle, two magazines and five rounds of live ammunition were recovered from the suspect, as manhunt for the fleeing suspects continue according to the police. The Anambra police command urges residents to remain vigilant and report any suspicious activities in their area to the nearest police station for prompt action.

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Just in: Dangote Refinery reduces price of petrol to N970 per litre

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The Dangote Group has announced a reduction in the price of its Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) to N970 per liter.

This was contained in a statement issued by Anthony Chiejina, the Group’s Chief Branding and Communications Officer, on Sunday.
Chiejina stated that the refinery has lowered its petrol price for marketers from N990 to N970 per liter, providing them with a N20 discount per liter.

Furthermore, he emphasized that despite the price reduction, the quality of the company’s products remains uncompromised.

The statement regarding the price adjustment reads:

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“Dangote Petroleum Refinery has effected a reduction in the prevailing price of its Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) from N990/litre to N970/litre for the marketers.

“As the year comes to an end, this is our way of appreciating the good people of Nigeria for their unwavering support in making the Refinery a dream come true. In addition, this is to thank the government for their support as this will complement the measures put in place to encourage domestic enterprise for our collective well-being.

While the refinery would not compromise on the quality of its petroleum products, we assure you of best quality products that are environmentally friendly and sustainable.

“We are determined to keep ramping up production to meet and surpass our domestic fuel consumption; thus, dispelling any fear of a shortfall in supply.”

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Insecurity! Bandits k!ll 7 farmers, burn 50 bags of maize in Niger state

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Bandits have k!lled seven farmers, including a vigilante, and burnt 50 bags of maize inside a truck in Bangi, Mariga Local Government Area of Niger State.

Sources on Saturday, November 23, told Daily Trust that the victims had gone to bring the harvested maize home from their farm when the bandits ambushed them, k!lled all the occupants in the truck and set the truck.

Bandits have killed seven of our farmers who had gone to farm to bring the maize they had harvested home. The attackers hid and waited until after the victims had loaded the 50 bags of maize into the truck and were about to take off to return home when they opened fire on them. After k!lling the victims, they also set the truck and the 50 bags of maize already loaded ablaze,” a source said.

He said it was difficult for farmers in Mariga to harvest their crops this year due to k!llings and kidnappings by bandits.

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