EFCC Trial: NNPC Witness Turns Against MT Ostria in 25 Million Litres Petrol Theft Case

The trial over the alleged theft of 25,354,000 litres of petrol belonging to NNPC Retail Limited took a dramatic turn on Tuesday as a second prosecution witness, an NNPC representative, testified against the vessel MT Ostria and its crew before Justice Mojisola Dada at the Special Offences Court in Ikeja, Lagos.

The defendants — MT Ostria, Captain Raymundo A. Panaligam, Chief Officer Roneno Villarin, and Vincent Wayas — were arraigned on October 29, 2025, on a four-count charge of conspiracy and stealing under Sections 411 and 280 of the Lagos State Criminal Law 2015, punishable under Section 287.

How the theft was discovered

Led in evidence by prosecution counsel Bilikisu Buhari, the witness explained that concerns first arose when D. Torros Shipping Limited, the receiving terminal, called for a suspension of discharge operations after noticing inconsistencies between the vessel’s reported discharge volume and the actual quantity received.

“From our operational perspective, we were worried about any delay that could cause additional cost on the operation. We were informed by Torros that the suspension was due to variations in quantities between the ship’s discharge figure and Torros’ received figure,” the witness told the court.

The discrepancy was reported to the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority, which escalated the matter to the Department of State Services and the EFCC. Torros also reported directly to the anti-graft agency.

Following the paper trail

The witness walked the court through the transaction structure: NNPC Retail owned the petroleum products; NNPC Trading handled the sale; NNPC Shipping managed the logistics. A Credit Sales Invoice (Exhibit P4) confirmed NNPC Trading sold approximately 20.3 million litres of PMS transported via MT Ostria, which had been nominated from a mother vessel, MT Northern Light.

The transaction followed an internal framework requiring requests through a company portal where Pro Forma Invoices are generated. Two PFI numbers — 20001584 and 20001601 — were presented as tracking references.

All documents were generated from NNPC’s operational systems, which the witness confirmed were functioning properly at the time. The court admitted them into evidence.

What is at stake

More than 25 million litres of petrol is no small quantity. At current prices, the stolen product runs into billions of naira. The case highlights a persistent blind spot in Nigeria’s downstream petroleum sector: the gap between what ships carry and what terminals actually receive.

If the prosecution secures a conviction, it could signal that the fuel supply chain is no longer the free-for-all it has been. But the trial is still in its early stages, and the defence has yet to present its case. Justice Dada adjourned the matter to Wednesday, April 15, for continuation of cross-examination.

Sources: Lagos Post Online, The Whistler