The Lagos Zonal Directorate 1 of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on Tuesday re-arraigned Abubakar Ali Peters, CEO of Nadabo Energy, over an alleged N1.4 billion oil subsidy fraud before Justice Ismail Ijelu of the Lagos State High Court in Ikeja.
Peters and his company, Nadabo Energy Limited, were previously on trial before Justice C.A. Balogun, but the case was reassigned following the judge’s retirement.
The defendants face a 27-count charge accusing them of using forged documents to illegally obtain N1,464,961,978.24 from the Federal Government under the Petroleum Support Fund (PSF).
One charge alleges that on April 3, 2012, Peters and Nadabo Energy claimed N978.4 million as subsidy for importing 19,488,992 litres of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) from Ashland SA, Switzerland. Investigations, however, showed only 6,505,140 litres were actually imported. Another count accuses them of forging a Marine Insurance certificate on October 25, 2011, to claim additional PSF funds, falsely presenting the document as valid insurance from Staco Insurance Plc.
Peters pleaded “not guilty” to all charges. Prosecution counsel, S.K. Atteh, requested a trial date and asked that Peters be remanded in a correctional facility. Defence counsel, E.O. Isiramen, opposed this, highlighting that Peters had been on bail since December 19, 2012, and had complied with all conditions.
Justice Ijelu ruled that Peters would remain on existing bail, directed sureties to reaffirm their commitment at the next hearing, and required the defence lawyer to sign an undertaking to ensure Peters’ attendance.
The trial was adjourned to May 19, 20, and 21, 2026, for commencement.
