Court sentences two to seven years in prison for crude oil racketeering

The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) says it has secured a seven-year conviction of two fraudsters: Aso Adasa Morrison and Frank Biobarakuma.

Azuka Ogugua, spokesperson of ICPC, made this known in a statement on Thursday. 

The suspects, according to the commission, were first arraigned in March 2013 before Biobele Georgewill, former justice of a high court in Rivers state, on a 17-count charge bordering on conspiracy, forgery, and obtaining by false pretence.

“The court was informed of how the convicts and others at large between the month of March 2012 and February 2013 in Port Harcourt, fraudulently obtained the sum of $260,000 and $402,300 from one Jung Yongmin, a South Korean, under the pretext of selling Nigerian crude oil to him,” the statement reads. 

“Their actions were contrary to sections 1 and 8 of the Advanced Fee Fraud and Other Related Offences Act, 2004 and section 467 of the Criminal Code Act, 2004.”

Ogugua said the convicts had earlier entered a “not guilty” plea when the charges were brought before them, setting the tone for a long legal battle. 

“However, it was only recently that Simeon Amadi, the trial judge and chief judge of Rivers state (who inherited the case after the elevation of Georgewill to the court of appeal) found the convicts guilty on all 17 counts,” she said. 

“In their allocutus to the court, defence counsel pleaded that the convicts were first-time offenders who have children to cater for and that the court should consider a non-custodial sentencing which was not granted.

“Handing down judgment, Amadi sentenced the duo to three years in prison for counts one to four; seven years in prison for counts five and six; and three years in prison for counts seven-17, without any option of fine.”

The spokesperson said the sentences are to run concurrently.

She added that the court further advised that the South Korean embassy (the petitioners) be informed of the judgment “which is a consequence of their petition to ICPC”.