The Federal High Court in Warri, Delta State, has sentenced 10 persons to jail for illegal dealings in petroleum products, together with substandard Automotive Gas Oil (AGO), also called diesel.
The convictions had been secured by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), in line with a press release shared by the fee on its official X account on Friday.
The defendants had been discovered responsible of felony conspiracy and illegal dealings in petroleum products after pleading responsible to the costs.
The sentences included jail phrases starting from two to 3 years, with choices of fines.
EFCC secures conviction of 10 in Delta
Justice H.A. Nganjiwa of the Federal High Court, sitting in Warri, convicted and sentenced the 10 defendants on Friday, November 6, 2026, after they pleaded responsible to a one-count cost of felony conspiracy and illegal dealings in petroleum products.
- “Justice H.A. Nganjiwa of the Federal High Court sitting in Warri, Delta State, on Friday, November 6, 2026, convicted and sentenced ten persons to jail for illegal dealing in petroleum products,” the EFCC assertion learn in half.
The defendants are James Terry, Gift Ezewu Godfrey, Obidi Peter Obi, Anthony Onyebuchi Edekobi, Victor Ataria Sule, Jubril Abubakar, Auwal Aliyu, Nnaemeka Nwobodo, Victor Edem and Sunday Ndem Eyere.
They had been prosecuted by the EFCC’s Benin Zonal Directorate. The prosecution counsel, Francis Jirbo, requested the courtroom to convict and sentence them after they entered responsible pleas.
One of the costs particularly concerned dealing in Automotive Gas Oil (AGO) that didn’t meet the anticipated high quality requirements. The offence was stated to have occurred on August 8, 2026, in Koko, Warri North Local Government Area of Delta State.
The cost in opposition to Victor Edem Udo cited Section 1(18)(a)(ii) of the Miscellaneous Offences Act, Cap M17, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria (Revised Edition) 2004.
Delta Court arms down jail phrases and fines
The courtroom imposed completely different jail phrases and effective choices on the 10 defendants, relying on the costs in opposition to them.
James Terry and Gift Ezewu Godfrey had been every sentenced to 2 years’ imprisonment, with an possibility of a N300,000 effective.
- Obidi Peter Obi, Victor Ataria Sule, Jubril Abubakar, Auwal Aliyu, Nnaemeka Nwobodo and Victor Edem every obtained three years’ imprisonment, with an possibility of a N300,000 effective.
- Sunday Ndem Eyere was sentenced to 3 years’ imprisonment or a N400,000 effective.
- Anthony Onyebuchi Edekobi obtained three years’ imprisonment or a N350,000 effective.
The EFCC stated the defendants’ arrest adopted intelligence from the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) about their suspicious actions in Koko, Delta State.
They had been subsequently arrested, investigated and prosecuted by the fee earlier than their conviction by the Federal High Court.
EFCC, Navy intensify crackdown on illegal oil commerce
The newest convictions come amid renewed efforts by safety companies to sort out illegal refining and the distribution of petroleum products in Nigeria.
On November 3, 2026, the EFCC disclosed that it had uncovered an illegal refinery allegedly operated by Chinese nationals in the Ogere area of Ogun State, the place substances suspected to be AGO had been found in underground tanks.
The fee stated preliminary investigations confirmed that the operators sourced sludge oil, also called black sludge, from Warri, Delta State, and Port Harcourt, Rivers State, earlier than transporting it to Ogere for processing into diesel for sale in the Nigerian market.
In one other growth, the Nigerian Navy uncovered a suspected illegal refining site containing approximately 114,500 litres of petroleum products in Rivers State in October 2026.
The discovery included about 105,000 litres of suspected illegally refined AGO and 9,500 litres of suspected stolen crude oil discovered in dugout pits.
