GREATRIBUNETVNEWS–CRACK detectives of the Special Fraud Unit, SFU, Ikoyi, Lagos have blown the lid on a multi-billion dollar fraud in Nigeria’s oil and gas industry.
The probe, launched immediately after Commissioner of Police, Eloho Edwin Okpoziakpo, assumed office, followed petitions from patriotic citizens and intelligence networks that exposed what is described as the biggest scam in the history of the sector.
$90 MILLION CONTRACT SCAM
In one explosive case, the SFU is investigating a petition by an anti-corruption NGO alleging criminal padding of an oil and gas contract by over $90 million.
But the investigation has rattled the powerful.
Sources revealed that those fingered in the fraud have launched a counter-attack, writing petitions against the CP and his team and mounting intense pressure on the Police Service Commission, PSC, to kill the investigation.
The trouble started after SFU officers bluntly rejected bribes from a major participant in the alleged fraud. The rejection reportedly triggered blackmail, leading to the CP being summoned to the PSC headquarters in Abuja.
The NGO has now drawn the battle line, threatening to drag the matter to the National Assembly and the United States Senate if the probe is tampered with, noting that some of the indicted companies have US links.
“Their mandate does not allow them to interfere with operational duties of the police. They should focus on promotion and discipline. This cannot happen in America. If they dare interfere, we promise to take it to where the commission or anybody else cannot summon any police officer to answer any question.”
The group insisted it will monitor for further interference and ensure the case is pursued “to its logical conclusion.”
—$617M INDIGENOUS COMPANY FRAUD—
Another major investigation involves a $617 million fraud allegedly perpetrated by an indigenous oil company.
According to SFU sources, a project to boost crude oil production was awarded to the company in 2018. In the same year, an expansion contract for the same project was also awarded to it, even though execution of the original project had not started.
Investigators allege that the vendors for both contracts are companies owned by the prime promoter of the oil firm. The expansion was allegedly used to access “Cash Call” funds which were then shared among conniving officials and the company.
The company is also accused of producing crude and under-declaring volumes, in what investigators describe as systematic theft from government revenue.
—$3BN CRUDE OIL THEFT PROBE—
A third investigation relating to crude oil theft worth over $3 billion is also said to be in the works at the SFU. Details of that probe were not immediately available.
—IGP BACKS UNIT’S INDEPENDENCE—
Officers at the SFU described the unit as the police’s leading arm for economic and financial crimes. They credited IGP Tunji Disu for deploying “a star investigator” to head the unit, and said results are now visible.
“The IGP gave stern directives that no fraud or criminal case should be swept under the carpet no matter the temptation by those involved,” a source said.
The SFU has reportedly received official clearance from authorities in Abuja to conduct the investigations without interference.
Both the IGP and CP Okpoziakpo could not be reached for comment at press time.
—CONTEXT—
The renewed focus on oil and gas fraud comes amid federal efforts to boost crude production and plug revenue leakages. Stakeholders have repeatedly called for stronger enforcement and protection for investigators handling high-profile cases in the sector.
SOURCE==NEWS EXPRESS==EXCEPT THE HEADLINE AND INTRO PLUS A FEW PARAGRAPHS
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