Fugitive Briton James Nolan Convicted Over $9.6bn P&ID Fraud as Nigerian Court Orders Sentence on Arrest

A Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has convicted fugitive British national James Nolan over his role in the controversial $9.6 billion Process and Industrial Development (P&ID) fraud case, marking a major development in one of Nigeria’s most high-profile financial crime prosecutions.

Delivering judgment on Monday, Justice Obiora Egwuatu found Nolan guilty in absentia on multiple counts bordering on money laundering, forgery, and obtaining by false pretence. The court also convicted his co-defendant, Micad Project City Services Limited, on several related charges.

The case was filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, which arraigned Nolan and the company in 2022 on a 20-count charge marked FHC/ABJ/CR/9/2022 before the Federal High Court Abuja.

During proceedings, the prosecution called six witnesses and tendered documentary evidence, while the defence elected not to call witnesses, relying instead on the prosecution’s case.

Justice Egwuatu held that the prosecution had sufficiently proven its allegations, except for Count 13, which was struck out because the alleged offence predated the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2011.

A key part of the judgment centred on forgery allegations involving documents allegedly signed by the late Lloyd Quinn in 2017—despite evidence that he had died in 2014. The court agreed with the prosecution that the signatures were fabricated, describing the documents as fraudulent.

The judge also ruled that Nolan’s trial in absentia was valid under the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA), 2015, noting that the defendant had absconded after being granted bail.

Nolan was initially remanded at the Kuje Correctional Centre before being granted bail in the sum of ₦100 million. However, he reportedly fled Nigeria in September 2022, prompting a warrant for his arrest.

He was later re-arrested by INTERPOL in Italy in January 2024 during a visit to his wife but has yet to be extradited to Nigeria for sentencing.

Justice Egwuatu ordered that Nolan would be sentenced immediately upon his arrest and return to the country through international law enforcement cooperation.

In a related ruling, another judge of the Federal High Court, Justice Donatus Okorowo, had previously ordered the winding up of two companies linked to Nolan, following findings of money laundering and asset diversion tied to the P&ID scandal.