Abuja High Court Remands Two British Citizens In Prison Over $9.6B P&ID Scam

By


James Richard Nolan charged to court in Abuja and sent to prison thereafter Justice Okon Abang of the Federal High Court, Abuja remanded a Briton in prison today for his alleged complicity in the $9.6bn arbitral award to Process and Industrial Development Limited by a United Kingdom commercial court.
Sent to prison until 20 November is James Richard Nolan, a director of Goidel Resources Limited. He and and Adam Quinn, son of Michael Quinn, the late co-founder of P&ID. were charged today by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission. But the younger Quinn was said to be at large. 
The defendants, both directors of Goidel Resources Limited, a Designated Non-Financial Institution (DNFI) and ICIL Limited, were docked on a 16 count charge bordering on money laundering.
Count one of the charges read: “That you James Richard Nolan and Adam Quinn(at large), sometime in December 2013 in Abuja, within the jurisdiction of this honorable court, being Directors of Goidel Resources Limited, a Designated Non-Financial Institution(“DNFI”) aided the said Company in failing to comply in the requirement of submitting to the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investments a declaration of the activities as specified under Section 5 (1)(a) of the Money Laundering Prohibition Act, 2011 as amended and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 18(a) of the Money Laundering Prohibition Act, 2011 as amended and punishable under Section 16 (2b) of the same Act”.
Another count reads: “That you Goidel Resources Limited, sometime in February 2014, at Abuja within the jurisdiction of this Federal High Court being a Designated Non-Financial Institution (“DNFI”) failed to report in writing to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission a single lodgment of the sum of $125,000 ( One Hundred and Twenty Five Thousand, Dollar only), in your account number 0154696732 domiciled in Guaranty Trust Bank Plc as specified under Section 10(1b) of the Money Laundering Prohibition Act, 2011 as amended and you thereby committed an offence punishable under Section 16(2b) of the same Act.”
After the charges were read to them, the defendants pleaded ‘not guilty’ to the charges, while Justice Abang struck out count nine of the charge on the grounds that “a court of law has no jurisdiction to entertain a charge against a non-registered person”. The prosecuting counsel, Bala Sanga asked the court for a trial date and an order to remand the defendants in prison custody.
“We object to the oral application of the defendant. We would be requesting an affidavit showing cause, why the bail should be granted”, he said. After hearing argument of counsel, Justice Abang refused the oral application for the bail of the defendants and adjourned till November 20 and 21, 2019, for commencement of trial.
He ordered the remand of the defendants in prison custody, pending the consideration of their bail applications. The EFCC had similarly arraigned two Nigerian directors of P&ID and a retired legal officer of the NNPC agency that signed the fraudulent gas supply deal with P&ID, on behalf of the Nigerian government.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

[PHOTOS] “Religion Has Happened To Me” - Man Mourns His Wife And Daughter Who Died In Stampede During Abia Catholic Church Procession

By
Image
A Nigerian man named Peter Ukaegbu, has mourned the loss of his wife, Emmanuella Chizoba, and their daughter, Onyinyechi Prisca, who tragically died in the stampede at Christ the King Cathedral (CKC) in Aba, Abia State. The mother, daughter and three other worshippers were trampled to d3ath, with about 13 children hospitalised, following the stampede which occurred during the annual Christ the King procession on Sunday, November 25, 2024.  The incident is believed to have occurred due to the overcrowding of the Christ the King Cathedral, as security men were alleged to have locked the gates of the church. In a heart-wrenching post on Facebook, Ukaegbu revealed that he and his wife had planned to celebrate their 10th wedding anniversary in Port Harcourt on November 30. “We would have been in P.H.C celebrating our 10th wedding anniversary today as we planned up to 23rd November, 2024. You woke up on Sunday morning with my adorable daughter who doubles as my second wife, cooked, bath ...
Read more

IBADAN STAMPEDE: “35 Dead Bodies Recovered, Six In Critical Condition” – Police

By
Image
  The Oyo State Police Command have revealed the number of dead that have been recovered in the deadly Ibadan stampede.   The police said no fewer than 35 bodies of minors, who were killed in the Ibadan stampede have been recovered.   The Police Public Relations Officer of the state, SP Osifeso Adewale, who confirmed this in a statement on Thursday, said about six minors who sustained severe injuries during the incident, are in critical condition. “So far (35) thirty-five minors have been documented dead while (6) six others are critically injured and on various medical interventions,”  he said.   Recall that a funfair organized by the former Queen of the Ooni of Ife, Prophetess Naomi Shikemi at the Islamic High School, Bashorun, Ibadan, had resulted in stampede, leading to the tragic incident.   The Oyo State Police Command said that eight persons involved in sponsoring the event had since been arrested.   The Police spokesman said those arrested incl...
Read more

World Bank Set To Approve Another $500 Million Loan For Nigeria Which Is 10th Disbursement Under Tinubu

By
Image
  The Board of the World Bank Group met on Friday 13th of December, to approve a new loan request from the President Bola Tinubu-led Nigerian government. This time, the country is seeking a $500million loan to boost rural access and agricultural marketing in the country. The loan sought by the government is targeted for the Rural Access and Agricultural Marketing Project—Scale Up. Further details of the proposed loan shows an intent to bridge the gap between rural communities and the broader marketplace, facilitating smoother access to agricultural markets, schools, and hospitals and promoting social cohesion among rural populations. According to the documents on the loan, states willing to participate in the project are required to have a fully functional Roads Fund and Roads Agency with appointed boards and staff, and provisions for administrative costs in the state budget. The document noted,  “While the eligibility for state participation under RAAMP required the drafting ...
Read more

Pastor Publishes Own Obituary To Escape N3 Million Debt Repayment In Ondo State

By
Image
  Ondo State Magistrate Court has remanded a 43-year-old clergyman, Paul Oyewole, for allegedly publishing his obituary on social media to evade the N3 million debt payment he owed one of his church members. Oyewole reportedly obtained the sum of N3m from Emmanuel Boyede, alleging that he would pay back the money within seven days. Police Prosecutor, Moremi Akao, told the court that the accused falsely published and posted his obituary on WhatsApp after sending a fake bank alert to his creditor. And alleged to have threatened the creditor on the phone.’ “He committed the offence between the 25th of November, 2021, and the 7th of May, 2022, in the Valentino area of Ondo town, punishable under Sections 419, 86, and 125A(1) of the Criminal Code, Cap 37, Volume 1, Laws of Ondo State of Nigeria, 2006,” Akao said. The cleric pleaded not guilty when the charges were read to him. The defendant’s counsel, Arokoyo Queen, applied for the cleric bail in the most liberal terms, promising he wou...
Read more

West Ham Star, Michail Antonio Involved In A Serious Car Accident

By
Image
  Michail Antonio, the West Ham striker, was involved in a road traffic accident on Saturday afternoon in the Essex area. The Jamaican footballer is said to be in a stable condition and "conscious and communicating" while under close supervision at a central London hospital. West Ham issued the statement confirming the forward, 34, had been involved in an accident after images emerged of a smashed Ferrari. In a statement, West Ham said Antonio is  "currently under close supervision at a central London hospital". The Premier League club added:  "At this difficult time, we kindly ask everyone to respect the privacy of Michail and his family. "The club will make no further comment this evening, but will issue a further update in due course." Essex County Fire and Rescue Service said it attended the scene of the accident in Epping on Saturday afternoon and released a man trapped in his car. "Crews were called at 1.02pm this afternoon after reports of...
Read more

Court Sentences Florida Woman To 25 Years Imprisonment For The Fatal Shooting Of Nigerian Woman In The US

By
Image
  A  court has handed a 25-year jail term to a white Florida woman over the fatal shooting of her Black Nigerian neighbour through a closed door. Back in August, Susan Lornicz was found guilty of manslaughter for the June 2023 shooting of Ajike “AJ” Owens during a dispute about children playing near Lornicz’s home in Ocala, in central Florida. Owens, a 35-year-old Nigerian mother of four, was unarmed and knocking on Lorincz's door when the older woman fired a single round from her handgun. She later told detectives that neighborhood children, including Owens’, had left toys in her yard before. She told police Owens was shouting  “I’m going to kill you”  while banging on the door after Lornicz earlier confronted the kids and threw a pair of roller skates. Judge Robert Hodges said he considered that Lorincz had already called 911 and police were on the way when she shot Owens. “The shooting was completely unnecessary in this case,”  the judge said. “ In this case,...
Read more

British Teenager Sentenced To One Year Imprisonment In UAE For Having Sex With 17-Year-Old Girl He Met During Holiday

By
Image
  A  British teenager has been sentenced to one-year imprisonment in UAE for engaging in sexual intercourse with a 17-year-old girl during a holiday romance. Marcus Fakana, of Tottenham, North London, was informed by his lawyer following a brief trial, with the verdict leaving his family 'devastated'. The 18-year-old was with his family in the UAE when he met and had sex with a 17-year-old girl from London. Detained in Dubai, the representative of Fakana, said the teen 'feels abandoned by the British government' following the judgement, which it branded 'an utter disgrace' and 'an embarrassment to Britain'. The teen and his loved ones had faced an agonizing wait while UAE officials determined his fate, which could have seen him caged in a hell-hole jail in the Middle East for 20 years. Marcus was arrested in August after the mother of the girl he had a holiday fling with filed a complaint about Fakana to the Dubai authorities on her return to the UK. She...
Read more