A High Court in Anambra State has sentenced Orient Petroleum Managing Director Nnaemeka Nwawka and the Sage Nebefeife Foundation to 14 years each for ₦25 billion fraud.
They were convicted of 10 counts, including theft and fraudulent conversion.
The court found that, between April and December 2012, the convicts fraudulently converted N82.8 million from Vhelbherg International Limited’s account with Standard Chartered Bank into the account of Sage Nebefeife Foundation at First Bank.
In another count, the court found that, between January and May 2013, the convicts converted an additional N29.6 million from the same company’s account into the foundation’s account for personal use.
The defendants had pleaded not guilty to the charges, prompting the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), through its counsel, Mr Victor Ukagwu, to proceed to a full trial.
The trial, commencing in 2014 and concluding in 2024, saw the EFCC call four witnesses and tender several documentary exhibits marked P1 to P24.
Testimony established that Nwawka facilitated contract awards from Orient Petroleum Resources Plc to companies linked to his associates.
The prosecution established that the convicts directed contract funds back to Nwawka through his foundation and withdrew them for personal use.
In response, the defence—Mr U.N. Udechukwu (SAN) for the first and third defendants, and Mr E.S.C. Obiora (SAN) for the second defendant—explained the processes by which the contracts were executed.
However, Justice Anyachebelu held that the prosecution proved its case beyond a reasonable doubt and convicted Nwawka and the foundation accordingly.
The court sentenced each of them to 14 years’ imprisonment and ordered a refund of N140.9 million to Orient Petroleum Resources Plc.
The conviction followed a 2013 petition to the EFCC by an investor, Chief Cletus Ibeto, who alleged that he invested N25 billion in Orient Petroleum Resources Plc.
According to Ibeto, the funds were siphoned through suspicious contract awards to companies tied to the managing director and routed back through the foundation.
