Court summons 7 top Shell Executive

An Abuja Upper Area Court Zuba in Abuja, Wednesday, issued an Order for substituted Service of criminal summons on seven top executive of Shell Petroleum development Company Limited.

The court actions were against the backdrop of court Bailiff inability to serve them with criminal summons.

The order Order was also sequel to an application by Counsel to the Complainant in the Suit.

The African Initiative Against Abuse of Public Trust had informed the Court that the Bailiff of the Court had effectively served the Company sued as the 1st Defendant,

However, the other Seven Defendants who are all top Executives of Shell were nowhere to be found to be served personally hence the application to Court.

Section 124 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2015 this medium recall allows for an order of substituted service to be pasted.

The Complainant had alleged that by the use of an unapproved metering system, Shell had wrongfully converted and unlawfully appropriated over 16 million barrels of Crude oil belonging to some Indigenous Oil Companies.

The NGO had in its complaints therefore seek the imprisonment of the officials by the court for alleged acts of Conspiracy, theft and cheating.

The offences jointly carry a maximum of over ten years in prison if convicted.

The Court had last week issued a criminal summons against the officials of Shell and scheduled hearing for today but the shell Executives did not appear in Court.

Speaking to newsmen after the sitting, Counsel to the Complainant Chibuzor Ezike said if by the March 23, 2021, the Shell Executives do not appear after the pasting of the summons at their office, he would have no other options but to apply for a bench warrant against the Defendants.

If ordered, the Police would be mandated to arrest and bring them to Court.

Meanwhile, efforts to reach out to any of the Shell Executives to hear their side of the story was futile as at the time of filing this report.

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