Singaporean loses $285,000 in alleged crude oil scam, EFCC arraigns suspect

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, has arraigned Amechi James Oduofor before the Federal High Court in Benin City, Edo State, over an alleged $285,000 crude oil scam involving a Singaporean, Jimmy Kee.

A statement by the agency said Oduofor was arraigned on Wednesday, October 21, 2026, by the EFCC’s Benin Zonal Directorate before Justice C. A. Obiozor on an eight-count charge bordering on forgery, impersonation and obtaining money by false pretence.

The commission alleged that Oduofor obtained the money from Kee by falsely claiming to be an official of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, and demanding a fictitious cargo reassignment fee for light crude oil from Nigeria.

According to the EFCC, the defendant allegedly posed as Bright Wilcox, an engineer and Desk Manager, Operations, Offshore, of the NNPC, to convince the Singaporean that the transaction was genuine.

The commission further alleged that Oduofor created a fraudulent email account and used it to send forged NNPC documents to Kee in an attempt to obtain the money.

One of the charges against him reads, “That you Amechi James Oduofor, sometime in 2020 within the jurisdiction of this honourable court, did knowingly make a false document to wit: a false identity card of Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation with the name Wilcox Bright as a Desk Manager – Operations Offshore Loading Petroleum, with intent that one Jimmy Kee, a Singaporean, may, in the belief that it is genuine, be induced to pay the aggregate sum of $285,000 (Two Hundred and Eighty-Five Thousand USD) to you and thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 1(2)(c) of the Miscellaneous Offences Act, CAP M17 of the Revised Edition (Laws of the Federation of Nigeria) 2007.”

Another charge accused Oduofor of knowingly altering a document described as a “Proforma Invoice for Marine (ATB)” and sending it to Kee through an email account identified as [email protected].

The charge reads, “That you Amechi James Oduofor, sometime in 2020 within the jurisdiction of this honourable court, did knowingly alter a false document captioned ‘Proforma Invoice for Marine (ATB)’ by sending the said document via your email [email protected] to one Jimmy Kee with intent that the said Jimmy Kee may, in the belief that it is genuine, be induced to pay the aggregate sum of $285,000 (Two Hundred and Eighty-Five Thousand USD) to you and thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 1(2)(2) of the Miscellaneous Offences Act, Cap M17 of the Revised Edition (Laws of the Federation of Nigeria) 2007.”

Oduofor pleaded “not guilty” to the charges when they were read to him in court.

Following his plea, prosecution counsel I. M. Elodi asked the court to fix a date for trial and order that the defendant be remanded in a correctional facility.

Justice Obiozor adjourned the case until November 19, 2026, for hearing and ordered that Oduofor be remanded in a correctional facility.