Oil marketer Glory Benson arraigned for allegedly defrauding customers of whooping N100m

Musbau Issa, an Economic and Financial Crimes Commission operative, testified before the Ikeja Special Offences Court on Thursday that Glory Benson, an oil merchant, allegedly scammed her customers of N100,865,000.

The EFCC has charged Benson and two of her firms, Glonnek Energy Resources Limited and Petroyal Energy Limited, with seven counts of stealing and converting.

The offenders were accused of dishonestly converting petroleum products worth N100,865,000 for personal use.

When the case was summoned, Bilikisu Buhari, the EFCC’s prosecution counsel, announced her arrival and informed the court that the matter was for trial, before leading Issa to the examination in chief.

While testifying before Justice Olubunmi Abike-Fadipe, Issa stated that the first defendant, Glory Benson, got various monies from the nominal complainants.

He informed the court that after conducting investigations, the commission learned that on April 19, 2022, the first complainant, Glory Onyeocha, put N16 million into the defendant’s account, and the defendant promptly transferred N300,000 to C.E.O Global Resources Empire.

The witness further stated that the sum of N9,974,000 was sent to Jusmac.

Issa stated that on the same day, the second complainant, Chinyere Akpa, paid N15,855,000, and the defendant instantly paid the first complainant N17,975000 and then wrote the PMS balance.

According to the witness, on the same day, Benson paid N15 to Ifeanyi, N7.2m to Jubrin, and N50,000 to Abdulahi Musa.

“From the analysis, we understood that she was owing some customers and once she received from customer A, she would use it to pay customer B.

“The second complainant on April 22, 2022, via C.E.O. paid the sum of N9,060,000 to Benson and the defendant made a payment of N6,346,800, to Jusmac. She made another payment of N420,000 to an unknown account and the description on the account was me.

“The sum of N1,726,000 was transferred to one Benedicta and was described as balanced. Also, on April 25, 2022, the first complainant sent the sum of N13,950,000 to the defendant, and immediately after she received the money, she used it to offset CEO Empire.

“The second complainant Chinyere Akpa also paid her the sum of N15,500,000 and the defendant used it to pay global resources and she wrote repayment of PMS,” the witness said.

However, Justice Abike-Fadipe adjourned the case till March 27, 2024, for continuation of trial.

When the defendant was arraigned, the prosecutor, Bilikisu Buhari, told the court that Benson alongside her companies committed the offences between April 14 and 25, 2023.

She said that the defendant on April 14, 2023, dishonestly converted PMS worth the sum of N15,500,000, to her use, property of Akpa (CEO Empire Global Resources LTD).

The prosecutor also alleged that the defendant on April 19, 2023, converted N15,855,000, on April 22, 2023, the sum of N9,060,000, on April 25, 2023, the sum of N15,500,000, all property of Akpa.

Buhari further told the court that on the same April 19, 2023, the defendant converted the sum of N16m, N15m and N13,950,000, to her use, all property of Onyeacha.

According to her, the offences committed contravened Section 278, punishable under section 285 (9) (b) of the criminal law of Lagos State 2011.

The defendant pleaded not guilty.