The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC Port Harcourt Zonal Office, on March 9, 2020 arraigned one Ebioenang Monday George before Justice E.A. Obile of the Federal High Court sitting in Port Harcourt, Rivers State on 23 counts of forgery and obtaining by false pretence involving an oil fraud.
George through his company, Bravem Service Limited, while posing as a staff of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, allegedly obtained N37million from his victim in the guise of helping to supply two barrels of Bonny Light Crude.
The defendant who was docked alongside his company, Bravem Services Limited, however pleaded “not guilty” to the charges.
One of the counts reads: “That you, Ebioenang Monday George, being the managing director of Bravem Services Limited on or about the 11th March, 2015 at Port Harcourt, Rivers State within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, with intent to defraud did obtain the sum of N19,000,000.00 (Nineteen Million Naira) from ICS Energy Limited through your company’s account, Bravem Services Limited domiciled in First Bank Plc by false pretence, when you presented yourself as a staff of Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and capable of selling one Cargo carrying Two Million Barrels of Bonny Light Crude Oil, a pretence you knew to be false and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 1(1) b of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Related Offences Act. No 14 of 2006 and punishable under Section 1(3) of the same Act”.
In view of the defendant’s plea, counsel for the EFCC, N.A. Dodo urged the court to fix a date for commencement of trial.
Defence counsel, N.A. Obiecheton prayed the Court for a short adjournment to enable her file an application for the bail of the defendant.
Justice Obile, thereafter, ordered that the first defendant be remanded in Port Harcourt Correctional Centre while the matter was adjourned to April 7, 2020 for commencement of trial.