The Nigeria Police Force (NPF) has declared three top executives of Cabota Energy Services Limited wanted over allegations of conspiracy, terrorism, kidnapping, attempted assassination, and criminal conversion.
The wanted individuals are Managing Director/CEO Akintayo Raymond Oluwaseyi, Chairman Obisike Uche Charles, and Executive Director Fagite Babafemi Oladipo, according to a police gazette obtained by SaharaReporters on Tuesday. The gazette, issued by the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Monitoring Unit, Abuja, cites a Federal High Court order (Charge No. CR: 3000X/IGP-SEC/MU/ABJ/T.2/VOL. 121/119).
Authorities allege that the executives conspired to defraud a complainant by stealing three new power-generating gas plants valued at over ₦3 billion, allegedly relocating them to undisclosed locations. The police also claimed the directors orchestrated the kidnapping and attempted assassination of the complainant to cover up the theft.
However, the directors have rejected the allegations as “false and malicious,” threatening to sue the NPF for ₦10 billion if the gazette is not withdrawn. In a statement through their lawyers, J.S. Agada & Co., they described the publication as a “flagrant contempt of court,” insisting the dispute is commercial in nature, arising from a lease agreement between companies, and subject to ongoing litigation in courts in Lagos, Abuja, and Kogi State. They further noted that multiple court orders currently preserve the status quo of the disputed assets.
Meanwhile, the complainant, Viagem Energy Services Ltd, maintains that the matter involves criminal activities, not contractual disputes. In its statement, Viagem alleged that the suspects attempted to kidnap a company representative in Lagos and move him to Abuja as part of an assassination plot, which security operatives foiled at Nnamdi Azikiwe Airport. Viagem stressed that the case revolves around theft, fraudulent asset sales, kidnapping, and attempted assassination.
