Two companies, Poseidon Marine Services Limited and DSC Marine Limited, on Friday pled guilty to a one-count charge each for dealing in petroleum products without lawful authority and appropriate licence.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission made this known in a statement to Financial Street, stressing that the firms were arraigned by the Benin Zonal Office of the commission for dealing in petroleum products without lawful authority and appropriate licence.
Justice Okon Abang of the Federal High Court sitting in Warri, Delta State on June 24, convicted and sentenced the two companies to a fine of N500,000 each.
The charge against Poseidon Marine Services Limited reads, “That you Poseidon Marine Services Limited, on or about May 19, 2019 at Escravos, Delta State within the jurisdiction of this honourable Court, did without lawful authority and appropriate licence, deal in petroleum product of over 150,000 litres of Automotive Gas Oil in large wooden (Cotonou) boat and being bunkered into your vessel at Escravos.
“That you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 1(17)(a)of the Miscellaneous Offences Act Cap M17 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria (Revised Edition) 2004 and punishable under Section 1(17)(c) of the same Act.”
Following similar charge read to DSC Marine Limited, the defaulting firms pled guilty to the charges.
Justice Abang sentenced the two companies to a fine of N500,000 each.
The judge also ordered that the 150,000 metric tonnes of AGO on board the boat, already sold for N6,616,607.52, pursuant to an order of the court, be forfeited to the Federal Government of Nigeria.
