Two fuel marketers jailed 14 years each for conspiracy and fraudulent collection of fund
By Jeph Ajobaju, Chief Copy Editor
Two fuel marketers, Mamman Nasir Ali and Christian Taylor, have been jailed 14 years each at the Lagos Special Offences Court in Ikeja for conspiracy and fraudulent collection of N2.2 billion under the Petroleum Support Fund (PSF) scheme.
Judge Mojisola Dada ruled that the prosecution established its case beyond reasonable doubt and found them guilty on multiple counts of conspiracy to obtain money by false pretences, forgery, and tendering false documents.
The court held that their conduct defrauded the federal government and also eroded public trust in the fuel subsidy programme.
Ali and Taylor were arraigned alongside their company, Nasaman Oil Services, on an amended 57 counts filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) following fresh findings during initial investigation.
They were originally arraigned on 49-counts before the case was reassigned to Dada after the withdrawal of Judge Adeniyi Onigbanjo.
The EFCC said the convicts on or about 9 November 2011 fraudulently obtained N749,991,273.36 by falsely claiming the amount represented subsidy payment for importing 10,031,986 litres of fuel from SEATAC Petroleum of the British Virgin Islands and delivered through MT Liquid Fortune Ex MT Overseas Lima, a representation they knew to be false.
The EFCC also told the court that on or about 11 April 2011, the convicts fraudulently obtained N1,480,074,125.61 by making similar false claims in the importation of 20,492,982.50 litres of fuel via MT Liquid Fortune Ex MT Hellenic Blue and Ex MT Milleura.
They both pleaded not guilty to all the charges.
The prosecution, led by Seiduh Atteh, called several witnesses and tendered numerous documentary exhibits the court admitted in evidence.
Dada imposed 14 years’ imprisonment on each convict, to run concurrently, and ordered the forfeiture of identified assets and bank accounts linked to the fraudulent scheme.
The Judge issued a bench warrant for the arrest of Oluwaseun Ogunbambo and Olabisi Abdul-Afeez, alleged accomplices to the fraud still at large.
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