26 July 2012, Sweetcrude, LAGOS – NIGERIA’s Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, on Thursday arraigned Mahmud Tukur, son of Alhaji Bamanga Tukur, Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, and four others for their alleged complicity in the fuel subsidy fraud before a high court sitting in Lagos. The suspects were subsequently granted bail.
Also arraigned with the son of the PDP chairman are Nasamu Ali, son of former chairman of the PDP, Ahmadu Ali, and Abdullahi Alao, son of prominent businessman, Alhaji Abdullazeez Arikesola-Alao.
The News Agency of Nigeria, NAN, reports that the accused persons were arraigned by the anti-graft agency before the Ikeja High Court in Lagos.
Tukur was arraigned alongside Alao, Ochonogor Alex and Eternal Oil and Gas Plc. before Justice Adeniyi Onigbanjo of the Lagos High Court, Ikeja.
The EFCC has slammed a nine-count charge of conspiracy, obtaining money by false pretence, forgery and use of false documents.
According to EFCC prosecutor, Mr Rotimi Jacobs, the accused persons had between January and April 2011 in Lagos, fraudulently obtained the sum of N1.8 billion from the Federal Government.
They allegedly obtained the money from the Petroleum Support Fund for a purported importation of 80.3 million litres of Premium Motor Spirit.
He said the accused persons also forged a Bill of lading dated April 28, 2011, which they used in facilitating the fraud.
Jacobs said their alleged offences contravened Sections 1(3) of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act of 2006.
The accused persons were each admitted to a N20 million bail bond with two sureties of at least Level 16 in the civil service. The sureties were required to produce three years worth of tax clearance certificates to be duly certified by the court registrar.
The bail condition also stipulates that the surety would be a wealthy Nigerian with landed properties worth N100 million.