EMEA News
Bunkering Vessel, Cargo Forfeited and Jail Terms Handed Down in Illegal Bunkering Case
Nigeria's Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has announced 14 men have been handed jail terms of between two and five years, and a Monjasa chartered bunkering vessel has been forfeited to the Federal Government of Nigeria after a guilty verdict was reached in a case of illegal bunkering.
The controversial case stems back to June 2015, when, as Ship & Bunker previously reported, 14 foreigners, who along with Monjasa DMCC, and Glencore Energy UK Limited (Glencore), and the vessel MT Anuket Emerald, were all charged with illegal bunkering.
The charges included "dealing in petroleum products without lawful authority or appropriate licence", and dealing with 1,738.087 metric tonnes of petroleum products "without lawful authority or appropriate licence."
All the accused had pleaded not guilty to the accusations.
During the course of the trial, the prosecution was said to have called seven witnesses, while the defence called three, including the captain of the vessel.
In a decision reached last Friday, Justice Ibrahim Buba said "the prosecution had proved its casebeyond all reasonable doubts."
The bunkering vessel MT Anuket Emerald, along with its cargo, was ordered to be forfeited to the Federal Government of Nigeria, while 11 of the accused were sentenced to two years imprisonment with an option of N1,000,000 ($5,000) fine each.
It would appear that three Russians among the accused, Pakhladzhian Artur, Kretov Andrey, and Shkundich Vasily, jumped bail last month and have not been seen since.
Defence counsel Babajide Koku said he had contacted the Russian Embassy in an effort to locate the men, but was told their whereabouts was unknown.
"As we speak, I do not know the whereabouts of the three. And it's highly embarrassing to say this, my Lord," Koku was quoted as telling Justice Ibrahim Buba in early February.
Justice Buba sentenced the three absent men to five years imprisonment each, starting from the day they are arrested, and ordered that they forfeit their bail bonds of N50 million each ($250,000) to the Federal Government of Nigeria.
It was also noted that two of the accused did not appear in court throughout the trial, but Justice Buba said it was clear they were aware of the court proceedings.
It was not clear exactly which two of the accused these were, but they were fined N5,000,000 ($25,000) each.
Bogus Accusations
When the case was brought last year, Anders Østergaard, CEO at Monjasa Holding A/S (Monjasa), made it clear be believed the accusations were bogus.
"Our ship was boarded by the Nigerian navy as they wanted to see whether we were carrying Nigerian crude oil on board," he said.
"All cargo is tested and the results confirm that the oil is, first of all, not crude, but fuel and diesel oil (bunkers), and that the oil is not Nigerian.
"Unfortunately the authorities (in Nigeria) are now trying to charge us with operating in Nigerian territory without permission, even though the ship was beyond the 12 nautical mile radius, thus located in international waters."
Glencore was not named in the release by EFCC, but last year Ship & Bunker noted that Glencore's involvement in the matter was limited to the fact their name appeared on the bill of lading, something which is standard practice as the company who sold the original cargo to Monjasa.
