From Godwin Tsa, Abuja
The Abuja division of the Federal High Court has passed a sentence of N2 million fine each on Victor Briggs and Abiye Membere, who were convicted for offences bordering on official corruption.
The former officials of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) were prosecuted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on money laundering charges alongside Jide Omokore, an oil magnate and Chairman of Atlantic Energy Drilling Concepts Nigeria Ltd.
Briggs, a former Managing Director of the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company, (NPDC), and Membere, a former Group Executive, Exploration & Production, NNPC, were all yesterday convicted by the court for official corruption.
Justice Nnamdi Dimgba sentenced them for unethically collecting car gifts while in office, contrary to the laws guiding the conduct of public servants. Justice Dimbga said even though the law stipulated a maximum of a seven-year jail sentence for the offence, the court was at liberty to exercise its discretion in handing down a sentence.
“I have taken into account all that has been said about the defendants on their patriotism, family and integrity and, also, that there is no evidence of a previous conviction. I, hereby, impose a fine of N2 million on each of the defendants, payable immediately, failure which they will be sentenced to two years in prison.’’
Before they were sentenced, however, Mr Yomi Ajisola, a petroleum engineer, giving evidence on the character of Briggs said: “I have known Briggs since our days as corps members in 1990 with Chevron, and he is a gentleman to the core.
“He personifies the saying “someone who cannot hurt a fly’’; I know him so well because I was his best man at his wedding, and he was my best man at my wedding.’’
Also speaking on the character of Briggs, Mr Mahmoud Bamanga-Tukur also affirmed that he was a man of impeccable character and a patriot who left a lucrative job abroad to serve the country.
Speaking for himself, Briggs prayed the court to temper justice with mercy and in handing down a sentence, consider the health condition of his wife as well as his family.
“I am very sorry for what happened, it was never intentional, so I plead with my lord to temper justice with mercy.’’
Testifying on the character of Membere, Mr Larry Osai described him as a patriotic Nigerian who loved his family with a passion and pleaded with the court to be merciful in sentencing his friend.
On his part, Membere said he was sad because the conviction was so disgraceful and a dent on his career, and he prayed the court to show mercy for his sake and that of his family and friends.
Counsel to both Briggs and Membere, Mr Tayo Oyetibo, SAN, and Mr Osaro Eghobamien, SAN, in their allocutus, equally prayed the court to exercise its discretion in favour of their clients and give them a bearable sentence.
Justice Dimgba had delivered judgment in the $1.6 billion fraud charge against the duo and Omokore and two of his companies.
The judge freed Omokore and his firms on the grounds that the prosecution, the EFCC, failed to prove the ingredients of the charge against them.
The defendants, along with two companies, were arraigned in 2016 for allegedly diverting over $1.6 billion belonging to the Federal Government, under the guise of an oil swap.
The charges bordered on obtaining by false pretence; conspiracy to obtain by false pretence, money laundering and taking possession of proceeds of money laundering.
Justice Dimgba held that after careful analysis of the evidence before him, there was no evidence that Omokore and the two firms obtained by false pretence the said oil swap deal from the government.
The judge said the testimony of one of the witnesses, a former Group Managing Director (GMD) of NNPC, Mr Andrew Yakubu, revealed that the agreement between the defendants was legally filed and entered into by the parties. He also held that the defendants demonstrated that they had the expertise and the wherewithal to procure crude oil from the NNPC, process the same and deliver the monetary equivalent of 5,652,227 barrels of crude oil.
The judge accordingly discharged Omokore on counts one to three on grounds that the prosecution failed to discharge the burden of proof in relation to the said counts.
On the issue of conspiracy, the court held that there was nothing before it to show that the defendants conspired to carry out the agreements in an unlawful manner because the agreements were lawfully and legally entered into by the parties. Similarly, the court discharged the defendants on the issue of money laundering on the grounds that the contract was lawful.
He, however, said he found Briggs and Membere guilty of a lesser offence according to Section 98 of the Criminal Code Act.