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 referred to as diesel.
The convictions have been secured by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), based on an announcement shared by the fee on its official X account on Friday.
The defendants have been discovered responsible of legal 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 legal 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 have been prosecuted by the EFCC’s Benin Zonal Directorate. The prosecution counsel, Francis Jirbo, requested the court docket 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 (*10*) Area of Delta State.
The cost towards 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 palms down jail phrases and fines
The court docket imposed completely different jail phrases and positive choices on the 10 defendants, relying on the costs towards them.
James Terry and Gift Ezewu Godfrey have been every sentenced to 2 years’ imprisonment, with an choice of a N300,000 positive.
- Obidi Peter Obi, Victor Ataria Sule, Jubril Abubakar, Auwal Aliyu, Nnaemeka Nwobodo and Victor Edem every acquired three years’ imprisonment, with an choice of a N300,000 positive.
- Sunday Ndem Eyere was sentenced to 3 years’ imprisonment or a N400,000 positive.
- Anthony Onyebuchi Edekobi acquired three years’ imprisonment or a N350,000 positive.
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 have 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 deal with 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 have been found in underground tanks.
The fee stated preliminary investigations confirmed that the operators sourced sludge oil, also referred to as 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 improvement, 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.
