Reported by: Ijeoma G | Edited by: Gabriel Osa
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has arraigned a Lagos-based businessman, Wilson Opuwei, alongside his company, Dateline Energy Services Limited, before the Special Offences Court in Ikeja over an alleged $550,000 fraud linked to a failed kerosene supply deal dating back more than a decade.
Opuwei and his firm were brought before Justice Olubunmi Abike-Fadipe on Tuesday, January 20, 2026, on a four-count charge bordering on obtaining money by false pretences and stealing. The case, which has experienced prolonged delays due to judicial transfers and procedural setbacks, has now been ordered to commence afresh.
According to the EFCC, the defendant allegedly obtained a total sum of $550,000 from a businessman, Prince Donatus Okonkwo, in April 2011 under the guise of securing an allocation of 5,000 metric tonnes of Dual Purpose Kerosene from the then Pipeline and Products Marketing Company. Prosecutors allege that the representation was false and that the accused knew it to be so at the time the funds were received.
One of the charges states that Opuwei and Dateline Energy Services Limited obtained $500,000 through an intermediary, Chimaobi Anyaso, claiming it was payment for the kerosene allocation. Another count alleges that an additional $50,000 was collected as part payment for the same purported transaction, which investigators say never existed.
The EFCC told the court that the case was not new to the Lagos judiciary. Opuwei was first arraigned in May 2011 before Justice Habeeb Abiru of the Lagos State High Court. However, following the elevation of Justice Abiru to the Court of Appeal in 2012, the matter was reassigned multiple times, passing through the courts of Justices Onigbanjo and Lawal Akapo, both of whom were also later elevated. These developments, according to the prosecution, stalled the proceedings and contributed to the case restarting.
Prosecuting counsel, Nwandu Ukoha, who appeared on behalf of lead counsel Fadeke Giwa, informed the court that although the prosecution had closed its case as far back as 2015, the defence failed to open its own case, resulting in the need for a trial de novo. He further submitted that delays in the matter were exacerbated by what the commission described as deliberate stalling by the defence.
When the charges were read in court, Opuwei pleaded not guilty to all counts. His counsel reminded the court that the defendant had been granted bail in May 2012 and urged Justice Abike-Fadipe to allow him to continue on the same bail conditions, noting that Opuwei had remained available to the court over the years despite the prolonged nature of the proceedings.
In her ruling, Justice Abike-Fadipe ordered that the defendant should continue on the earlier bail terms granted by the court and fixed multiple dates for the commencement of trial. The matter was adjourned to March 19, 30 and 31, as well as April 1 and 2, 2026, for hearing.
The case highlights the challenges associated with long-running financial crime prosecutions in Nigeria’s judicial system, particularly those affected by changes in judicial assignments and procedural delays. As the trial resumes after more than a decade, the EFCC maintains that it is committed to seeing the matter through to its conclusion, reinforcing its stance that alleged economic crimes, regardless of how old, will be pursued to ensure accountability.
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