Lionstone MD Amaechi Ndili Acquitted in Theft Case

The Lagos State High Court in Ikeja discharged and acquitted Amaechi Ndili, the Managing Director of Lionstone Offshore Services, along with three other Defendants, including Njide Chizoba Ndili, Lionstone Offshore Services Limited, and Lionstone Company Limited. This ruling was delivered by Justice Olubunmi Abike-Fadipe on September 16, 2026, after the court upheld the Defendants' no-case submission against a four-count charge of conspiracy, stealing, and dishonest conversion.

The prosecution alleged that the Defendants conspired to steal or convert $4,666,234.28 between July 2012 and September 2013, related to payments from Addax Petroleum for Hercules Offshore Nigeria Limited. The Defendants pleaded not guilty.

Justice Abike-Fadipe noted that Hercules Offshore had previously obtained an arbitration award in London and a Federal High Court order in 2017 to enforce that award. The court found that the criminal proceedings were misused for debt recovery, emphasizing that the Police are not debt-recovery agents, thus deeming the prosecution an abuse of court process.