EFCC arraigns five for illegal crude oil deal

Five defendants, including a vessel named Mt Vinnalaris, were charged by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) before a Federal High Court in Lagos for engaging in an illegal deal involving petroleum products.

The defendants, namely Azeez Abubakar, Wisdom Borborley, Samuel Akpan, and Freedom Otuagoma, appeared before Justice Chukwujekwu Aneke and pleaded guilty to the charges.

The prosecutor, Mr R.A. Abdurasheed, informed the court that a plea bargain agreement had been filed with the defendants.

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The court adjourned the case until April 25 for the adoption of the plea bargain agreement and ordered that the defendants remain in the custody of the prosecution until then.

The defendants were accused of unlawfully dealing in 515.8 litres of crude oil without proper authorization, which is a violation of the provisions of Section 1(17) and 3(6) of the Miscellaneous Offences Act, Cap M17 Law of the Federation 2004.