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The Federal High Court in Warri, Delta State, has sentenced 10 persons to prison for illegal dealings in petroleum products, including substandard Automotive Gas Oil (AGO), also known as diesel.
The convictions were secured by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), according to a statement shared by the commission on its official X account on Friday.
The defendants were found guilty of criminal conspiracy and illegal dealings in petroleum products after pleading guilty to the charges.
The sentences included prison terms ranging from two to three years, with options of fines.
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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 guilty to a one-count charge of criminal 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 statement read in part.
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 were prosecuted by the EFCC’s Benin Zonal Directorate. The prosecution counsel, Francis Jirbo, asked the court to convict and sentence them after they entered guilty pleas.
One of the charges specifically involved dealing in Automotive Gas Oil (AGO) that did not meet the expected quality standards. The offence was said to have occurred on August 8, 2026, in Koko, Warri North Local Government Area of Delta State.
The charge against 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 hands down jail terms and fines
The court imposed different prison terms and fine options on the 10 defendants, depending on the charges against them.
James Terry and Gift Ezewu Godfrey were each sentenced to two years’ imprisonment, with an option of a N300,000 fine.
- Obidi Peter Obi, Victor Ataria Sule, Jubril Abubakar, Auwal Aliyu, Nnaemeka Nwobodo and Victor Edem each received three years’ imprisonment, with an option of a N300,000 fine.
- Sunday Ndem Eyere was sentenced to three years’ imprisonment or a N400,000 fine.
- Anthony Onyebuchi Edekobi received three years’ imprisonment or a N350,000 fine.
The EFCC said the defendants’ arrest followed intelligence from the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) about their suspicious activities in Koko, Delta State.
They were subsequently arrested, investigated and prosecuted by the commission before their conviction by the Federal High Court.
EFCC, Navy intensify crackdown on illegal oil trade
The latest convictions come amid renewed efforts by security agencies to tackle 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, where substances suspected to be AGO were discovered in underground tanks.
The commission said preliminary investigations showed that the operators sourced sludge oil, also known as black sludge, from Warri, Delta State, and Port Harcourt, Rivers State, before transporting it to Ogere for processing into diesel for sale in the Nigerian market.
In another development, 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 found in dugout pits.
