Capital Oil boss, four others still unable to get bail

 A Federal High Court in Lagos on Tuesday fixed Oct. 18 to hear a bail application filed by the Managing Director of Capital Oil and Gas, Ifeanyi Uba, facing trial over alleged N43.29 billion fuel subsidy fraud.

Charged with Uba in the suit by the Police Special Fraud Unit (SFU) at the Tinubu Magistrates’ Court in Lagos are Nsika Usoro, Godfrey Okorie, Chibuzor Ogbuokiri, and Joseph Orji– all employees of the company.

The SFU accused the men of economic sabotage, obtaining money by false pretences,money laundering, forgery.  and stealing of N43.291 billion, property of the Federal Government,

The defendants, who appeared before Magistrate Martins Owumi, were remanded in the SFU custody for 14 days.

Justice Okon Abang adjourned the case till Oct. 17 for the SFU to respond in writing to the motion before the court.The court, while adjourning the case, said that this would be the last adjournment in the bail application.

Mr Aderemi Adekile, counsel to the respondents, had appealed for another adjournment  to enable him respond to the motion on notice.According to him, there had been no time to respond to the converted motion as directed by the court, due to the short time span.

“It is in the interest of justice for this weighty application to be adjourned, so as to enable the prosecution put something on the other side of the scale of justice,” he said.Counsel to the applicant, Mr Joseph Nwobike (SAN), opposed the application, arguing that parties were bound by the record of the court in which the order for hearing was made.

Nwobike said that it was not fair to extend time in favour of the respondents, in a matter of fundamental human right enforcement which the law stipulates should be treated with urgency.

“The only conclusion to be drawn from my learned friend’s application for extension is that he has failed to obey the order of court for the purpose of filing his response.“The application is unmeritorious and unjustifiable.

“If my lord grants this application for adjournment, then the unlawful detention of the applicants would have gained judicial certification and support,” Nwobike argued.Citing Order 4 Rule 4 of the Fundamental Human Right Enforcement Procedure Rules, he urged the court to dismiss the application and hear the motion on notice.

In his ruling, Abang pointed out that the court was a temple of justice and it behoves on the respondent, having been served, to respond as ordered by the court.“It is at the discretion of the court whether or not to adjourn, but in doing this, the court is enjoined to take into consideration the entire circumstances of the case.

“Justice delayed is justice denied, but also justice rushed, is justice quashed, I so hold” Abang ruled. (NAN)

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Court remands Capital Oil boss over N43billion subsidy fraud

 A Tinubu Magistrate Court in Lagos Thursday ordered that the Chief Executive Officer of Capital Oil Limited, Chief Ifeanyi Ifeanyi Ubah be remanded in a Lagos  prison for 14days over N43.291billion subsidy fraud.

Also to be  remanded are the company's Head of Trading, Nsikan Usoro; Depot Manager, Godfrey Okorie; General Manager, Operations, Chibuzor Ogbuokiri and Executive Director, Operations of Capital Oil and Gas Limited, Orji Joseph Anayo.

Presiding Magistrate, Martins Owunmi ruled that the accused be remanded to enable them file their application properly.

He turned down the oral applications for bail made by their counsel,Joseph Nwobike (SAN) on the ground that the money involved is much.

"In view of the section 264(1) of the administration of criminal justice and considering the huge money involved,the court will not have jurisdiction to entertain the matter.But if the still want to argue their case for bail, they should do so by written application.I hereby rule that they should be remanded in prison for 14 days".

The Special Fraud Unit of the Nigerian Police Force, Ikoyi, Lagos, in their request for remand brought in pursuant to section 264 Administration of Criminal Justice.

Law,2011 said the officials of Capital Oil and Gas Limited are reasonably suspected to have committed the offences of economic sabotage,obtaining money by false pretences,stealing of N43.291billion,property of the Federal Republic of Nigeria,money laundering and forgery within the Lagos Magisterial District in the
year,2011.

In its 11-grounds for the remand of the accused,the Special Fraud Unit said the suspects defrauded the Federal government of the sum of N43.291billion by falsely
pretending that their company had imported and sold 538,74million litres of Premium Motors Spirit during the 2011 fiscal year through 26t transactions.

It said the fraud was discovered by the Presidential Committee on the Verification and Reconciliation of Fuel Subsidy Payments Auditors and reported to the Special
Fraud Unit, Ikoyi,Lagos for investigation.

It also said most of the evidence and exhibits of the criminal acts will be destroyed by the suspects,if released from custody at this stage of the investigation.

It further said it is in the national interest that the suspects are in custody to prevent them from tampering and preventing the gathering of evidence and exhibits in
question.

According to the affidavit in support of application for the remand, deposed by CSP Francis Idu, the 26 importation and sales transaction claimed by the company were never done but the oil company fraudulently obtained N43.291billion from the Federal government.

He said the fraud was suspected when the Presidential Committee on Verification and Reconciliation of Fuel Subsidy Payment engaged auditors to conduct field examination of each oil marketing and trading company.

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Fuel scam: Capital Oil boss, Ifeanyi Uba arrested

 The Special Fraud Unit, Milverton Ikoyi, has arrested  the Managing Director of Capital Oil & Gas Industries Ltd , Mr Ifeanyi Uba, over   alleged involvement of his companies in the fuel subsidy scam.

 

At press time, the  oil magnate who arrived the Unit  in the company of his lawyers  was still being interrogated.His company was indicted by Mr Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede-led 15-man presidential panel constituted by President Goodluck Jonathan to re-investigate the findings of the report of an earlier investigation panel set up by the Ministry of Finance on fuel subsidy payments valued at over N2 trillion.

But  the management of Capital Oil and Gas Industries Limited  denied  that its managing director was arrested, stating that Uba voluntarily visited the Unit on a routine verification exercise on subsidy claim and returned to the office.

However, when we spoke with SFU’s Public Relations Officer, Ngozi Insitelu, at about 6.30p.m, she simply stated that Uba was still being interrogated over the oil subsidy scam. She could, however, not give detail on why it was taking the Unit long to release him.

At about 7.25pm, we reliably gathered that the oil magnate was still being quizzed by a seven-man detective team. It was also gathered that three management staff of his company were  undergoing interrogation in another room in the anti-fraud unit.

Clad in a blue caftan with a pair of black shoes, Uba, who was in the company of his lawyer, reportedly responded to some of the questions posed to him.It could, however, not be ascertained whether he would be allowed to go home, as sources at  the Unit said the interrogation might take long.

According to sources at the unit, “we are not done with the interrogation.  He may or may not go home today.”

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