The federal high court in Abuja has remanded Akintoye Akindele, chief executive officer (CEO) of Duport Midstream Company Limited, at the Kuje correctional centre.

On Tuesday, Akindele was arraigned by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on a four-count charge bordering on money laundering and contract fraud.

The anti-graft agency accused Akindele of allegedly collecting $35 million from the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) to build a 2,000 barrel-per-day refinery, jetty, gas plant, data centre, and tank farm at Okpoama community in Brass LGA of Bayelsa state.

The EFCC alleged that Akindele received the funds through the bank account of Atlantic International Refinery and Petrochemical Limited and funneled the monies into four of his companies and bureau de change outlets.

The companies are Platform Capital Investment Partners, Duport Midstream Company Ltd., Puisance Afrique Dynamics Ltd., Adamantine Petrochemical & Refinery Ltd.

“That you, Akindele Akintoye, and Platform Capital Investment Partners Limited, between December 2020 and February 2021, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, indirectly retained the sum of $16,006,000 (Sixteen Million, Six Thousand United States Dollars), being part of the funds dishonestly converted from the money paid by the NCDMB to Atlantic International Refinery and Petrochemical Limited as investment, knowing the said sum constituted proceeds of unlawful activity, thereby committing an offence contrary to Section 15(2)(d) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2011 (as amended by Act No. 1 of 2012) and punishable under Section 15(3) of the same Act,” one of the counts reads.

The defendant pleaded not guilty to all the charges.

After the ‘not guilty’ plea, Ekele Iheanacho, counsel to the EFCC, asked the court to remand Akindele in the custody of the correctional centre and seek a trial date.

However, Emmanuel Esadio, counsel to the defendant, told the court that a bail application has been filed and served on the prosecutor.

In his response, Nwite said it will take a 48-hour period for the bail application to be considered.

Esadio requested that his client be remanded in the custody of the anti-graft agency.

However, Iheanacho opposed the request, arguing that the EFCC lacked adequate facilities.

The EFCC counsel said the defendant had demonstrated untrustworthiness by collecting his international passport and claiming that it is in the court’s custody.

“The defendant cannot be trusted. He has shown tendencies that suggest he may commit another crime,” Iheanacho said.

“Additionally, there is no medical evidence before the court to support claims of ill health.”

The trial judge remanded the defendant at Kuje correctional centre and adjourned the case to December 31, 2024.

The Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has initiated enforcement action against five airlines, comprising two international and three domestic operators, for violating Part 19 of NCAA Regulations of 2023.

NCAA said the violations include failure to refund passengers within the stipulated timeframe, non-responsiveness to authority’s directives, incidents of missing and manhandled luggage, short-landed baggage, and issues relating to flight delays and cancellations.

Michael Achimugu, NCAA’s director of public affairs and consumer protection, confirmed it to TheCable on Tuesday.

Although Achimugu did not reveal the names of the sanctioned airlines, he explained that while airlines are not always at fault for flight disruptions, NCAA regulations mandate specific actions they must take during such instances.

He said failure to adhere to the directives results in varying levels of penalties.

The director noted the surge in passenger complaints about delays and cancellations during the festive season, attributing some disruptions to harmattan-related poor visibility.

“We all know that this is harmattan season, so there is poor visibility. Flights must get cancelled. This is force majeure, and the airlines do not owe passengers anything in those instances. The enforcement we are initiating today is on cases where the airline is deemed to have been at fault. More will come,” Achimugu said.

He added that the NCAA would summon the chief executive officers (CEOs) of all airlines this week for a meeting to address flight disruptions and regulatory breaches.

After one week of inactivity, the Port Harcourt Refining Company has resumed the trucking out of Premium Motor Spirit otherwise called petrol.

Recall that the refinery abruptly stopped the loading of petrol a fortnight ago as no reason was initially offered for the development which left many marketers stranded.

Our reporter, who visited the Port Harcourt Refinery Depot reports last Thursday, reported that the place was a shadow of itself as the loading bay was empty without any activity from the preceding week.

The Chief Corporate Communications Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, Olufemi Soneye, had in a statement said preparations for loading operation were ongoing.

But after Saturday PUNCH’s, it was gathered on Monday that the lifting of petrol commenced with 11 trucks loading PMS from the depot.

Also our reporter who visited the facility on Monday observed that activities had yet to fully commence, as there was no human nor vehicular activities until 1 pm when things started picking up.

By 1:14 pm trucks were seen driving into the 18-arm loading bay and by 2 pm seven trucks drove in and started loading, as two trucks immediately lifted petrol while a fire service truck was stationed at the loading bay in the event of any fire outbreak.

The first truck started lifting petrol at exactly 1:18 pm, while two trucked out petrol by 2 pm on Monday. A total of 10 trucks lifted petrol as at 4:30 pm, which indicated that more trucks might load before 6 pm.

While the trucks at the loading bay were lifting PMS, seven other cleared trucks were waiting to load at the Onyema gate adjacent the loading bay when our reporter left the depot on Monday evening.

Meanwhile, some marketers seen at the depot of the old Port Harcourt Refining Company built in 1963, decried the frequent shutting down of loading operations without any explanation.

They also expressed dismay that of the 18 arms in the loading bay, only three were functional while the others had yet to be caliberated.

One of them who gave his name as Liti, said, “We are not happy over what is happening here. If operation is going on fully here you will see this place will be full of trucks and they can load up to 50 trucks before 6 pm.

“So let the government come and help us and make sure the refinery is working well.”

It was also gathered that not all the arms in the loading bay were supplying petrol, some were meant to truck out kerosene and diesel. The refinery has yet to commence production of kerosene and diesel.