The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has arraigned the former Managing Director of the Port Harcourt Refining Company Limited (PHRC), Ahmed Adamu Dikko, over an alleged N1.32 billion money laundering scheme.
Dikko was brought before Justice Inyang Ekwo of the Federal High Court in Abuja on Wednesday, July 8, 2026, where he faced a 12-count charge bordering on money laundering. The charges, marked FHC/ABJ/CR/360/2026, were filed on June 22, 2026, by EFCC counsel, Ekele Iheanacho, SAN.
Also listed in the charge is Masterpiece Projects & Investment Limited as the second defendant.
The EFCC alleged that Dikko laundered a total sum of N1,322,839,112.70—funds said to be linked to contractors engaged by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) for the rehabilitation of the Port Harcourt refinery. The commission claimed the funds were concealed through various means, including cash property purchases, undisclosed bank transactions, third-party fund movements, and unauthorized currency conversions, in violation of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.
According to the charge sheet, one of the counts stated that Dikko made a cash payment equivalent to N218,375,000 to an individual, Hadeija Bashir, for the purchase of a property located at Plot 558, Abubakar Umar Street, Katampe Extension, Abuja, without passing through a financial institution.
Another count alleged that on June 26, 2023, Dikko disguised the origin of N328,710,337.50 paid into a GTBank account operated by Masterpiece Projects & Investment Limited. The funds were reportedly linked to transactions involving the allocation of Vacuum Gas Oil by NNPC Limited for export and were suspected to be proceeds of unlawful activity.
The EFCC further accused Dikko of converting $77,080 between October 2022 and May 2025 through a third party, Ibrahim Isa Yaro, funds which allegedly did not form part of his legitimate earnings as a public officer.
Dikko pleaded not guilty to all the charges.
Following his plea, his counsel, Okechukwu Ajunwa, SAN, applied for bail, which was opposed by the EFCC prosecution.
In his ruling, Justice Ekwo granted the defendant bail in the sum of N150 million, with one surety who must reside within the court’s jurisdiction and possess a landed property valued at not less than the bail amount. The court, however, ordered that Dikko be remanded in EFCC custody pending the fulfillment of the bail conditions.
The case was adjourned to October 12, 13, and 14, 2026, for trial.
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