Abuja: EFCC Witness Details How Couple Allegedly Swindled Her of N58.1m in Bitter-Kola Export Scam  

By Joseph Sunday 

A civil servant, Chinyere Okoroafor, on Monday, June 22, 2026, told the Federal High Court in Abuja how she lost N58.1 million to an alleged investment scam run by Osabohein Alex Ologbose, CEO of Onome Global Market Resources Limited and Lexicon Multi-concept Media Limited, and his wife, Hope Onome Oghelemu.

Testifying as the First Prosecution Witness, PW1, before Justice Ekerete Akpan, Okoroafor narrated her ordeal in the ongoing trial of the couple and their two companies. The defendants are being prosecuted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, on a seven-count charge of obtaining by false pretence, conversion of funds, and money laundering involving N740 million. The charges are contrary to Section 18(2)(b) of the Money Laundering Prevention and Prohibition Act 2022, according to the EFCC.

At Monday’s hearing, prosecution counsel O.S. Ujam insisted the case proceed despite a plea for adjournment by defence counsel Peter Femi Joseph. Joseph told the court his team recently took over the matter and had not received all case documents. “I just came into the matter newly, and some documents have not been handed over to me by the other counsel,” he said. The court declined the adjournment.

Okoroafor told the court she was introduced to the scheme by Alice Ayeni Alade, a NEXIM Bank staffer. Alade pitched an investment in bitter-kola exports to China, Hong Kong, and Indonesia, claiming the produce was used for pharmaceutical purposes. 

“She told me about the return on investment which looked good and because she was working with NEXIM Bank and we were talking about exportation, I believed and trusted her,” Okoroafor testified. Alade said the business was run by Ologbose and Oghelemu through Onome Global Resources, where they serve as managing directors.

The witness said the investment had an eight-week maturity. Two weeks were for sourcing bitter-kola, four weeks for shipping, and two weeks to process payment from foreign partners. Based on that, she transferred N58.1 million to Alade’s GTBank account.

After eight weeks passed with no returns, Alade said she had not received payment from the couple. Ologbose and Oghelemu then joined a WhatsApp group to plead for patience, citing flooding in China, fire in Hong Kong, and freight issues. 

Okoroafor said the couple also attended a meeting at Living Faith Church, Sunny-Ville Estate, Abuja, where Oghelemu knelt and begged, promising returns within two weeks. “This was before I realised that there was no investment at all and that the defendants had no dealing whatsoever with the foreign companies they were flaunting. All she said was a scam,” Okoroafor told the court, as contained in the EFCC press release signed by Dele Oyewale, Head, Media & Publicity.

She confirmed Alade showed her CAC documents and company profiles of Onome Global Market Resources, and provided proof that the N58.1 million was sent to the first and third defendants.

“Till date, I have not received any return on investment from the defendants. I have not even had any communication with the defendants. I have not equally received the principal sum that I invested,” she added.

Justice Akpan adjourned the matter till July 1, 2026, for cross-examination.  

Source: EFCC Press Release, signed by Dele Oyewale, Head, Media & Publicity, June 22, 2026.