EFCC charges former Port Harcourt refinery head with money laundering

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on Wednesday charged the former managing director of Port Harcourt Refining Company Limited (PHRC), Ahmed Dikko, with money laundering.

Mr Dikko appeared before Judge Inyang Ekwo at the Federal High Court in Abuja to answer to 12 charges of money laundering.

The EFCC brought the case against him along with Masterpiece Projects & Investment Limited.

Both defendants pleaded not guilty to all the charges.

Judge Ekwo granted him bail at N150 million with one surety and set 12, 13, and 14 October for the trial to start.

In the charges filed on 22 June by EFCC prosecutor Ekele Iheanacho, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), the EFCC claimed that Mr Dikko used part of the funds believed to be from illegal activities to buy property in Abuja.

Mr Dikko was the managing director of Port Harcourt Refining Company Limited until recently.

PREMIUM TIMES reported on 29 June that the EFCC charged Mr Dikko and the former managing director of Warri Refining and Petrochemical Company (WRPC), Jimoh Olasunkanmi Yisawu, over alleged misuse of funds meant for fixing Nigeria’s state-owned refineries.

The report added that Mr Yisawu faced separate charges on eight counts at the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court in Abuja on 22 June.

This prosecution is part of the EFCC’s efforts to hold officials accountable for money allocated for the repair and maintenance of the country’s refineries.

Past governments, including the last administration of President Muhammadu Buhari, spent money on maintenance of government-owned refineries that did not produce any refined products.

The commission accused the two former refinery chiefs of laundering money from illegal activities, taking payments from contractors hired by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited, operating accounts to hide illicit funds, and making large cash transactions against the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.

In a related development, PREMIUM TIMES noted that the EFCC recovered over N9.4 billion and $21.2 million, worth about N29.26 billion, as well as several properties during the investigation. The total value of cash and assets traced by the commission in the refinery case is about N38.66 billion.

The charges were read to Mr Dikko after the prosecution got the judge’s approval.

Defence lawyer Ikechukwu Ajunwa, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), did not oppose the bail request.

He asked the court to enter a plea of not guilty for the second defendant, the company.

Mr Dikko pleaded not guilty to all 12 counts.

Mr Ajunwa then moved for his client’s bail application filed on 3 July, based on Sections 34(4) and 36 of the Constitution and Sections 156 and 158 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA), 2015.

He argued that Mr Dikko had met the conditions of the earlier granted administrative bail by reporting to the EFCC as required. He also said the defendant would not flee or disrupt the trial.

In response, Mr Iheanacho referred to a counter-affidavit filed on 7 July against the bail request.

Judge Ekwo ruled that the court has the power to grant or deny bail. He said since bail is a constitutional right, enough evidence must be presented to the court to deny an accused person the relief they seek.

Judge Ekwo then granted Mr Dikko bail at N150 million with one surety.

He ordered that the surety must own property within the court’s area, be a responsible citizen, and submit the title documents for verification by the court registrar.

Judge Ekwo also instructed Mr Dikko to deposit his international passport with the court and said he must not leave Nigeria without the court’s permission.

The judge then adjourned the case until 12, 13, and 14 October for the trial to begin.

Mr Dikko was made managing director of Port Harcourt Refining Company Limited in March 2020 to oversee the federal government’s multi-billion-dollar effort to fix the state-owned refinery.

The charges involve transactions that allegedly took place between 2022 and 2025, during and after his time as managing director of the refinery.

In the first count, the EFCC alleged that in February 2024, Mr Dikko indirectly made a cash payment of N218.375 million to one Hadeija Bashir for buying Plot 558, Abubakar Umar Street, Katampe Extension, Abuja, without using a financial institution.

The commission claimed the transaction broke Sections 2(1)(a) and 19(1)(d) of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022, and is punishable under Section 19(2)(b) of the same Act.

In the second count, the EFCC alleged that between 21 and 25 October 2022, Mr Dikko kept N100 million in Fidelity Bank account number 4020827615. The money was part of payments made to him by Ebenco Global Link Limited, a contractor to PHRC, which he allegedly knew was from illegal activities.

Count three claimed that between 7 December 2022 and 19 December 2023, Mr Dikko kept N90 million in his Guaranty Trust Bank account, which was also part of funds he allegedly received from Ebenco Global Link Limited.

The EFCC further alleged in count five that on or about 20 May 2022, Mr Dikko controlled N30 million paid through Guaranty Trust Bank account number 0158257115, linked to Medinus Mildred Oluba. The payment allegedly came from Ebenco Enterprises, a company tied to a contractor for PHRC.

In count eight, the commission claimed that on or about 26 June 2023, Mr Dikko hid the source of N328,710,337.50 paid into Guaranty Trust Bank account number 0123201507, which belonged to Masterpiece Projects & Investment Limited. The EFCC alleged that OMSA Integrated Services Limited paid the money from transactions involving NNPC’s allocation of Vacuum Gas Oil for export and that Mr Dikko knew it came from illegal activities.

The commission also claimed that between August 2023 and January 2024, Mr Dikko took N59.2 million through his Guaranty Trust Bank account from funds allegedly paid by OMSA Integrated Services Limited to Masterpiece Projects & Investment Limited.

In count 10, the EFCC claimed that between June 2022 and January 2023, Mr Dikko got Ebenezar Oluwagbemiga of Ebenco Global Link Limited to receive N356,412,500 for him when he should have known that the money was from illegal activities.

Count 11 alleged that between October 2022 and May 2025, Mr Dikko converted $77,080 through Ibrahim Isa Yaro. The commission said this money was not part of his known legal earnings as a public officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, formerly the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation.

In the last count, the EFCC alleged that between 22 December 2022 and 11 April 2023, Mr Dikko indirectly controlled N20 million through Guaranty Trust Bank account number 0233656547, which was operated by his son, Ahmed Ahmed Dikko. The commission claimed this money was from illegal activities and is punishable under Section 18(3) of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.