The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has apprehended Timber Kesiye Wabote, the former Executive Secretary of the Nigeria Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), in connection with an alleged $35 million fraud tied to the Brass Project.
Also, the Managing Director of Atlantic International Refinery and Petrochemical Limited, Akintoye Akindele, who was arrested by the anti-corruption agency a few weeks ago is still being kept in detention, and will be arraigned alongside Wabote soon.
Akindele was arrested over alleged misappropriation, money laundering and diversion of public funds to the tune of $35 million.
Wabote’s arrest was also linked to a failed $35 million Atlantic Refinery Project.
Currently being held at the EFCC’s Abuja facility, Wabote’s involvement stems from his leadership role at NCDMB from 2016 to 2023. Investigations revealed that the NCDMB provided counterpart funding for the Energy Infrastructure Park project, which was meant to include a refinery, jetty, gas plant, and other facilities in Okpoama, Bayelsa State.
Reports indicated that despite the $35 million paid to Akindele to complete the project, minimal progress was made, with the project abandoned since December 2020.
Under Wabote’s watch, the NCDMB financed multiple projects, including the $35 million for the Brass FTZ, but it is alleged that these funds were not appropriately used.
Apart from the alleged $35 million Bayelsa Refinery scam, Akindele, a former Managing Director of Duport Midstream Company Limited and Chairman of Platform Capital, who is also being tried by the Police over alleged diversion of $5,636,397.01, and N73,543,763.25, belonging to Summit Oil International Ltd, and bribery of the Police with N150 million, is alleged to linked to various other scams.
The Nigeria Content Development and Monitoring Board was said to have paid $35m to Akindele to build a 2,000 barrel-per-day refinery, jetty, gas plant, power plant, data centre and tank farm at Brass Free Trade Zone, Okpoama Community in Brass Local Government Area of Bayelsa State.
However, after receiving the money in December 2020, Akindele was accused of abandoning the projects.
Akindele, a promoter of the Energy Infrastructure Park financed by the Nigeria Content Development and Monitoring Board, in Okpoama community in Brass LGA of Bayelsa state, initially mooted the idea of the project to the board and the NCDMB embraced it with a counterpart funding to the tune of $35m.
“NCDMB allegedly paid $35m to Akindele to build a 2,000bpd refinery, jetty, gas plant, power plant, data centre and tank farm at Brass Free Trade Zone, Okpoama Community in Brass LGA of Bayelsa State.
“Since December 2020 when the payments were made, Akindele allegedly abandoned the project with little or nothing to show for the huge sum paid to him.”
Source said Akindele allegedly received the money through the Atlantic International Refinery and Petrochemical Limited and sent it to four of his companies.
A source said, “Akindele received the funds through the bank account of Atlantic International Refinery and Petrochemical Limited and funnelled the funds into four of his companies: Platform Capital Investment Partners, Duport Midstream Company Ltd., Puissance Afrique Dynamics Ltd, Adamantine Petrochemical & Refinery Ltd and Bureau de Change outlets.
“The EFCC has been on a manhunt for him for several months until he finally showed up when he could no longer bear the fire on him. He was thereafter arrested and detained at the commission’s holding facility in Abuja.”
In May, this year, a former member of the House of Representatives, Israel Sunny-Goli, had petitioned the EFCC to probe multi-million naira investments made by the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), among which was the Atlantic Refinery project.
He disclosed that a full investment of $35 million was made for the Atlantic Refinery project, which was expected to be a 2,000 bpd modular refinery with a jetty facility and 2MW power plant, with a duration of 24 months completion at the Brass Free Trade Zone (FTZ).
Sunny-Goli said in the petition that; “Its target completion period was 24 months from the date of financial close. Full investment amount of $35m was released in one bullet in October 2020.
“The project has stalled and has little or nothing to show for the disbursement made.”
He listed Dr Akindele Akintoye, NCDMB former Executive Secretary, Simbi Wabote and Director, Finance and Personnel Management, Isaac Yalah as the principal suspects in the alleged scam.
Also in March this year, the House of Representatives Committee on NCDMB commenced investigation into the $35 million investment in Atlantic International Refinery and Petrochemical Limited (AIRPL) and some other projects executed by the board.
