February 19, (THEWILL) – A Special Offences Court in Ikeja, Lagos State, has sentenced businessman and socialite, John Abebe, to seven years imprisonment for forging a document belonging to an oil company.
Mojisola Dada, the presiding judge, who gave the ruling on Saturday, February 18, however, gave an option of a fine of N50 million to be paid within 30 days.
Recall that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), in 2018, arraigned Abebe, a younger brother to former First Lady, late Stella Obasanjo.
The EFCC claimed that Abebe knowingly forged a November 30, 1995, letter written by BP Exploration Nigeria Limited to Inducon Nigeria Ltd.
The anti-graft agency also claimed that the businessman illegally inserted into page 2 of the said letter that: “Also note that the ‘Buy-Out Option’ only applies to the pre-production stage of the NPIA.
“The $4 million buy-out is thus irrelevant from production of Oil in any of our fields.”
The EFCC added that Abebe attempted to pervert the course of justice by tendering the forged letter “as fabricated evidence” in court, in suit no: FHC/L/CS/224/2010 between John Abebe, Inducon Nigeria Limited, and Statoil Nigeria Limited.
In addition, the anti-graft agency accused him of attempting to mislead the court by using fabricated evidence contrary to section 120 (2) of the criminal code cap C17, Law of Lagos State, 2003.
