The Federal High Court in Abuja on Thursday ordered the forfeiture of assets of Process and Industrial Development Limited (P & ID) and its Nigerian affiliate, P&ID Nigeria Limited, after conviction on charges of fraud and tax evasion.
The EFCC had arraigned representatives of the firms before Justice Inyang Ekwo, over the gas processing contract that led to a British court of arbitration judgment which awarded the firm about $9.6bn worth of Nigerian assets.
Justice Inyang Ekwo, in his judgment also ordered the forfeiture of “the assets and properties” of the two firms to the Nigerian government.
He gave the orders in a judgment read after the two firms, pleaded guilty to the 11 counts charges preferred against the companies by the EFCC.
READ ALSO: BREAKING: $9.6 billion award – P&ID plead guilty to tax evasion, fraud
They were accused of fraudulently claiming to have acquired land from the Cross River State Government in 2010 for the gas supply project agreement which led to the $9.6bn judgment.
EFCC investigator, Usman Babangida, gave testimony before the court after the representatives of the firm pleaded guilty to all 11 count charges.
He reviewed the facts of the prosecution case which was not opposed by the defence, which includes documents relating to the 2010 gas supply contract.
Also, the EFCC tendered findings from its investigation activities which were admitted as exhibits by the judge without objection from the defence.
Shortly after, the judge pronounced the two firms guilty. Subsequently, making an ‘allocutus’, plea for mercy, P&ID’s lawyer Akurunwua, urged the judge to consider “the forthrightness and candour” of P&ID by pleading guilty and not wasting the time of the court in the trial.
However, the prosecution led by Bala Sanga asked Justice Ekwo to order the winding up of the company as the sentence for the offenses.
Justice Ekwo in his judgment, “in view of the facts, evidence and guilty plea of the defendants, the orders to be made was for the winding up of the companies and forfeiture of their assets, which is the position of the law.”
