Court Orders Police to Pull Back from Nestoil Site

A new development in the debt conflict between FBNQuest Merchant Bank Limited, First Trustees Limited, and the oil and gas company Nestoil L...

A new development in the debt conflict between FBNQuest Merchant Bank Limited, First Trustees Limited, and the oil and gas company Nestoil Limited has seen the Federal High Court in Lagos direct the Lagos State Police Command to promptly remove its personnel from the defendants' offices.

The instruction came after a decision made on November 20, 2025, by Judge Daniel Osiagor, which canceled a previous order that allowed police to be present at the locations of Nestoil Limited, Neconde Energy Limited, and their directors, Ernest Azudialu-Obiejesi and Nnenna Obiejesi.

In a letter addressed to the Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Deputy Chief Registrar Longwa communicated the court's most recent stance and informed the police that the earlier directive used for the deployment had been revoked.

The correspondence, also dated November 20, 2025, mentioned Case No. FHC/L/CS/2127/2025 and verified that Justice Osiagor's decision invalidated the enforcement measures related to the plaintiffs' claims. Consequently, it ordered the immediate withdrawal of all personnel stationed at the defendants' location.

The core conflict, initiated by FBNQuest Merchant Bank and First Trustees Limited, involves claims of significant debt obligations related to Nestoil and its associated entities.

On Thursday, the Court removed the $1 billion Mareva injunction that had restricted Nestoil Limited's assets and those of its directors, enabling the company and its subsidiaries to reclaim control over their funds and property.

Justice Daniel Osiagor, who assumed the case after instructions from the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, determined that the ex parte injunction issued on October 22, 2025, by Justice Dehinde Dipeolu had expired.

The court determined that the order expired automatically 14 days following the defendants' submission of a motion to cancel it, in accordance with the Federal High Court Rules.

The Mareva order prevented Nestoil, its subsidiary Neconde Energy Limited, and the company's founders, Dr. Ernest Azudialu-Obiejesi and Nnenna Obiejesi, from transferring money, selling stocks, or accessing other assets through over 20 banking institutions.

It also granted First Trustees Limited and FBNQuest Merchant Bank Limited, representing a group of creditor banks, the authority to assume control of Nestoil's assets through receivership.

At Thursday's hearing, senior counsel represented all the parties involved: Babajide Koku (SAN) for the plaintiffs, Dr. Muiz Banire (SAN) for Nestoil, Chief Wole Olanipekun (SAN), and Mr. Bode Olanipekun (SAN) for Neconde Energy Limited; and Chinonye Obiagwu (SAN) and Kehinde Ogunwumiju (SAN) for the other defendants.

Olufemi Oyewole (SAN) acted on behalf of entities requesting to be included.

While speaking to the court, Koku asked the judge to stop the process, referring to an ongoing Notice of Appeal that is contesting Justice Dipeolu's decision on November 7, 2025, to step down from the case.

Dr. Banire responded by stating that submitting an Appeal Notice does not automatically halt the process, referencing the court's inherent authority under Order 32 Rule 1 of the Federal High Court (Civil Procedure) Rules 2025 to grant protective orders.

Chief Olanipekun mentioned that the Chief Judge possesses legal authority under Section 22(1) of the Federal High Court Act to move cases at any point, noting that earlier decisions do not restrict a new judge.

He also informed the court that once the case is moved, proceedings will need to begin again, and previous decisions will not be binding on the new court.

Lawyer Ogunwumiju and Obiagwu contended that the Mareva injunction would not withstand the transfer.

Ogunwumiju stated, “A one-sided order automatically expires 14 days after the defendant submits a request to cancel it. Mareva injunctions are short-term emergency actions and cannot be extended indefinitely without infringing on the constitutional right to a fair hearing.”

Obiagwu mentioned that Nestoil and Neconde submitted a request to cancel the order on October 30, which made the injunction legally ineffective starting November 14, 2025.

Following the submission of oral arguments, Judge Osiagor decided that the ex parte Mareva injunction had lapsed 14 days after the filing of a motion to revoke it, making any discussions relying on the order theoretical.

He confirmed the Chief Judge's final power to transfer the case and explained that documents mentioning the former judge would not cause delays in the process.

The court also mentioned that transferring the case to a different judge is not eligible for an appeal, and highlighted that the process would not be paused merely because documents submitted at the Court of Appeal referred to the former judge.

The directive stated in part:

The choice that moved this case is not subject to appeal. This Court will not halt the process if documents submitted to the Court of Appeal mention Dipeolu J. and not Osiagor J.

There is no longer an active ex-parte order, as 14 days have passed since the Motion on Notice that challenged it. Since the order has expired, the arguments from parties impacted by the ex-parte order are now irrelevant or theoretical.

The court postponed the case to November 25, 2025, for the Motion for Joinder and to December 12, 2025, for the review of outstanding applications.

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