Justice Inyang Ekwo of the Federal High Court, Abuja has ordered the remand of a former Managing Director of Port Harcourt Refinery, Ahmed Adamu Dikko in Custodial Centre of the Nigerian Correctional Centre, NCoS for alleged N1.3 billion 12-count charge bordering on money laundering.
The trial judge’s order, is pending when the defendant meets his N150,000,000 (One Hundred and Fifty Million Naira) bail condition with a surety who must be resident within the jurisdiction of the court and with a landed property valued at not less than the bail sum.
The defendant who pleaded not guilty to the charges when it was read to him, was arrested and arraigned by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission on Wednesday, July 8, 2026 in a charge, marked FHC/ABJ/CR/360/2026 and dated and filed on June 22 by the Commission’s counsel, Ekele Iheanacho, SAN, listed Dikko and Masterpiece Projects & Investment Limited as first and second defendants respectively.
Counsel to the defendant, Okechukwu Ajunwa, SAN urged the court to grant the defendant bail pending the determination of the suit. But, Iheanacho, however, opposed the bail application before the court adjourned to October 12, 13 and 14, 2026 for the trial.
A statement published on social media by the anti-graft Commission alleged that Dikko, who led the Port Harcourt Refining Company for about four years, pleaded not guilty to a 12-count charge filed against him by the Commission on Wednesday, July 8.
The EFCC accused Dikko of laundering N1,322,839,112.7 (One Billion, Three Hundred and Twenty-Two Million, Eight Hundred and Thirty-nine Thousand, One Hundred and Twelve Naira, Seven Kobo) in proceeds allegedly linked to contractors engaged by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) for the rehabilitation of the Port Harcourt refinery, through cash property purchases, undisclosed bank retentions, third-party fund concealment and unauthorised currency conversion, in violation of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.
Count one reads in part: “That you AHMED ADAMU DIKKO… did directly make cash payment of the dollar equivalent of the sum of N218,375,000.00 to one Hadeija Bashir for the purchase of Plot 558, Abubakar Umar Street, Katampe Extension, Abuja without passing through a financial Institution and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Sections 2(1)(a), 19(d) of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022 and punishable under Section 19(2)(b) of the same Act.”
Count eight reads: “That you AHMED ADAMU DIKKO, former Managing Director of the Port Harcourt Refining Company Ltd (PHRC) on or about the 26th of June, 2023 in Abuja within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court disguised the origin of the sum of N328,710,337.50 (Three Hundred and Twenty Eight Million, Seven Hundred and Ten Thousand, Three Hundred and Thirty Seven Naira, Fifty Kobo) paid into the GTBank Account Plc No. 0123201507 operated by Masterpiece Projects & Investment Limited by OMSA Integrated Services Limited from the transactions involving NNPC Limited allocation of Vacuum Gas Oil for export when you knew that the said sum of N328,710,337.50 constituted proceeds of unlawful activity and you thereby committed an offence contrary Section 18(2) (a) and punishable under Section 18(3) of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.”
Count eleven reads: “That you AHMED ADAMU DIKKO between October, 2022 and May, 2025 did convert the aggregate sum of $77,080 through Ibrahim Isa Yaro which amount did not form part of your known lawful earnings as a former public officer with the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Ltd and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 18(2)(b) of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022 and punishable under Section 18(3) of the same Act.”
Dikko, an engineer, was reportedly appointed Managing Director of the Port Harcourt Refining Company in March 2020 with a mandate to drive the rehabilitation of the moribund refinery. He led the company for roughly four years before leaving the position.
The charges against Dikko form part of a wider EFCC investigation into the alleged diversion of funds released for the turnaround maintenance and rehabilitation of Nigeria’s state-owned Refineries.
