Justice O. M. Anyachebelu of the Anambra State High Court has convicted and sentenced Nnaemeka Nwawka, Managing Director of Orient Petroleum Resources Plc, alongside Jude Anniekwe Cyril and the Sage Nebefeife Foundation, to 14 years’ imprisonment each for fraud involving about N25 billion.
The court found the defendants guilty of stealing, fraudulent conversion, and gratification after a trial that lasted nearly a decade. They were convicted on a 10-count charge bordering on financial crimes.
One of the counts stated that Nwawka, Cyril, and the registered trustees of the foundation fraudulently converted N29,620,733 to personal use. Another count accused them of converting the same amount in similar transactions carried out in Anambra State between 2012 and 2013.
The defendants had pleaded not guilty at arraignment, prompting the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission to proceed with full prosecution. During the trial, the EFCC presented four witnesses and tendered documentary evidence detailing how contracts were allegedly awarded to companies linked to associates, with funds subsequently traced to the foundation connected to Nwawka for personal benefit.
In his judgment, Justice Anyachebelu held that the prosecution successfully proved its case beyond reasonable doubt. The court concluded that the evidence established a pattern of diversion of company funds through questionable contract awards and financial transfers.
Beyond the custodial sentence, the court ordered Nwawka and the foundation to refund N140.9 million to Orient Petroleum Resources Plc.
The prosecution stemmed from a petition filed by investor Cletus Ibeto, who alleged that he invested N25 billion in the company but later suspected that substantial sums were siphoned through what he described as suspicious and bogus contracts awarded to related firms.
The judgment marks the culmination of a protracted legal battle over alleged financial misconduct within the oil firm.
