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The FCT High Court in Maitama, Abuja, on Thursday, freed former Minister of Aviation, Stella Oduah, and her co-defendant from N2.5 billion fraud charges following a deal they struck with the Nigerian government.
The court gave the ruling after the Director of Public Prosecution of the Federation (DPPF), Rotimi Oyedepo, reported that the defendants had refunded the loot for which they were charged.
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He said the federal government had received the amount of money alleged to be stolen in the charges from Ms Oduah and her co-defendant, Gloria Odita.
“I have the instruction of the Attorney-General of the Federation to inform your Lordship that the state confirms receipt of the value of the subject matter of this charge,” Mr Oyedepo said, without giving a figure.
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He requested that the charges against the two defendants be struck out, a call the defence lawyers supported.
The judge, Hamza Muazu, ruling as requested, said, “The charge (relating to the former minister and her co-defendant) dated 13 October 2025 is hereby struck out, and defendants hereby discharged.”
But the judge convicted two corporate entities, through which the alleged fraud was committed, and ordered them to make restitution of N1.2 billion to the federal government.
Mr Muazu also ordered the forfeiture of N780 million naira “recovered by the investigating agency in the course of investigation.”
The forfeiture, the restitution order and the conviction of the companies – Sobora International Limited and Global Offshore Marine Limited – were part of the settlement agreement.
Thursday’s proceedings were the culmination of the settlement talks between the parties which delayed the commencement of trial after the arraignment of defendants in December last year.
Mr Oyedepo first spoke publicly about the settlement talks between the prosecution and the defendants during the 12 February proceedings.
Holding back details, he said Ms Oduah submitted the application in line with the provisions of Section 270 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA) 2015, which governs plea bargaining in the Nigerian criminal justice system.
On 5 March, Mr Oyedepo, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), informed the judge that Ms Oduah and Ms Odita had begun making restitution.
It came about three months after the defendants were arraigned on 10 December 2025 by the Attorney-General of the Federation’s office on five charges of N2.5 billion fraud.
The prosecution accused them of fraudulently obtaining N2.5 billion from the Ministry of Aviation, disguised as the cost of technical supervision and security.
It alleged that the defendants committed the offences in January 2014, just about a month before Ms Oduah was forced out of office over a procurement scandal.
Ms Oduah served as Minister of Aviation from 2 July 2011 to 12 February 2014 during the administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan. She subsequently served two terms representing Anambra North Senatorial District from 2015 to 2023.
The AGF office brought the charges against them under sections 8(a) and 1(1)(a) of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act 2006. The offences are punishable under Section 1(3) of the same Act.
One of the counts alleged that Ms Oduah and her co-defendants obtained “the whopping sum” of N2.5 billion (N2,469,030,738.9) from the federal aviation ministry “through Broad Waters Resource Nigeria Limited and Global Offshore Marine Limited by false pretence”.
The prosecution also alleged they knew that representing the money as “cost of technical supervision and security integrated and logistics support services” was false.
The defendants pleaded not guilty to all the charges.
How companies were sacrificed to bear criminal liability
At the start of Thursday’s proceedings, Mr Oyedepo informed the court that new amended charges had been filed, excluding Ms Oduah and Ms Oditah.
The new charges featured the two corporate entities, Sobora International Limited and Global Offshore Marine Limited, as the only defendants.
Defence lawyers, Onyechi Ikpeazu and Wale Balogun, both SANs, confirmed the development but opposed their clients taking pleas on behalf of the companies.
However, Mr Oyedepo insisted that the defendants were in control of the company during investigation and could stand as representatives of the companies to take the pleas.
Messrs Ikpeazu and Balogun argued that the representatives of the companies were in court to take the plea.
After hearing their submissions, the judge noted that the court’s record would not show the conviction of Ms Oduah and Ms Odita. He said they would only be recorded only taking pleas on behalf of the companies.
He said if there was no agreement, the lawyers should go back to discuss the matter further with the AGF.
Mr Oyedepo then requested a break, during which the prosecution and the defence reached an agreement.
They agreed that the names of Ms Oduah and Ms Odita would not be reflected in the record.
Ms Oduah, standing as a representative of the two companies, pleaded guilty to amended two counts of fraud on behalf of the firms.
The court then pronounced the guilt and conviction of the entities.
In the two counts prosecution alleged that in 2015, one of the firms, Sobora International Limited, took a fraudulent possession of “the sum of N838 million reasonably suspected to be illegally obtained from the Ministry of Aviation through a Security company, ISEC Security Maintenance Limited.”
Similarly, Global Offshore Limited, was accused of being possession of ill-gotten N1.629 billion from ISEC Security Maintenance Limited.
In 2018, the EFCC invited Ms Oduah on allegations concerning fraud in the N9.4bn ISEC contract for security installations in some airports.
