Police bust $4m oil fraud syndicate, arrest key suspects
Operatives of the Nigeria Police Force have apprehended key members of an organised crime syndicate accused of defrauding international oil trading firms of over $4 million.
The syndicate, allegedly led by Marine Gold Oil Refineries Limited, Eagle Capital Management, and Richrice International Corporation, operated across Nigeria, China, and the United States.
Addressing journalists in Abuja on Thursday, the Force Spokesman, Muyiwa Adejobi, said the suspects were arrested between January 4 and January 31, 2025.
He stated that operatives arrested one David Udensik, also known as Dr. Jacob Bello for allegedly forging documents from the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited and using them to scam oil traders to the tune of $610,000$610,000.
Adejobi said, “The NPF-NCCC has successfully apprehended key members of an organized crime syndicate involved in a $4 million fraud targeting international oil trading firms. The syndicate, allegedly led by Marine Gold Oil Refineries Limited, Eagle Capital Management, and Richrice International Corporation, operates across Nigeria, China, and the United States, specializing in high-level fraud schemes within the global oil and gas industry.
“On January 4, 2024, detectives arrested one (Dr.) David Emmanuel Udensik, also known as Dr. Jacob Bello, a Nigerian national from Akwa Ibom State. Udensik is accused of generating fraudulent intelligence reports, forging documents from the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), and misusing these documents to scam oil traders, resulting in fraudulent proceeds of $610,000.”
Following a year-long investigation, Adejobi said police also arrested Engr. Isaac Jerome Oyakhilome, Managing Director/CEO of Marine Gold Oil Refineries Limited and a director at Richrice International Corporation.
He added, “Oyakhilome was responsible for preparing and signing fraudulent sales agreements for crude oil with NNPCL, facilitating a multimillion-dollar fraud scheme that netted $1,151,495 for his company, which has no known physical address.
“In the course of these arrests, officials recovered several exhibits, including ₦55,000,000 (approximately $33,428.57), assets valued at ₦370,000,000, multiple electronic devices, and a Toyota Camry vehicle, as the suspects have reportedly confessed to their roles in the criminal operation.”
Adejobi also said Cybercrime operatives arrested Solomon Chidiebere Akunyalam, a 24-year-old suspect involved in a sophisticated cryptocurrency scam.
“Investigation further revealed that in April 2024, the suspect, using a foreign phone number, approached the complainant on the Binance platform and convinced him to continue their conversation on WhatsApp. Under the guise of offering trading lessons with minimal charges, he agreed.
“The suspect then instructed the complainant to enable third-party authentication on his mobile device, having sent a phishing link disguised as further activation for subscription of a particular application. The unsuspecting victim clicked and activated the phishing link on his device and his wallet was immediately drained of $86,000,” he added.
He also said On January 31, 2025, police raided a cybercrime hideout in Ipent 2 Estate, Lokogoma, Abuja, arresting two suspects, Irhene Efe Wealth (25) and Irhene Godstime (21).
Adejobi said the duo specialized in stealing and selling foreign nationals’ Facebook accounts to cybercriminals.
In Lagos, Adejobi said police arrested Idowu Emmanuel, also known as @lilsmart on Instagram, for falsely accusing musician Naira Marley (Abdulazeez Adeshina Fashola) of abduction, assault, and fraud.
“Investigations revealed that the suspect, using his Instagram handle @lilsmart, falsely alleged that he was abducted, assaulted, and robbed of $300, further claiming that Naira Marley had bribed all police officers in Lagos and was involved in credit card fraud.
The suspect later admitted in writing that these allegations were false and without evidence to prove his claim. On January 28, 2025, he was apprehended at his residence in Megamound Estate, Ajah, Lagos, and the exhibits involved in this crime were recovered,” he added.
