![Rev. Fr. Anthony Odiong, a US-based Nigerian Louisiana Catholic priest, was arrested in Florida on Tuesday for possessing child pornography, according to law authorities. The suspect is reportedly accused of many other cases of sexual assault. The Waco, Texas, Police Department announced in a Facebook post on Tuesday that officers detained Father Anthony Odiong in Ave Maria, Florida, with assistance from the United States Marshals Service. Waco police announced in March that they had received "credible information" about a sexual assault allegedly committed by Odiong in Texas in 2012. “During the subsequent investigation, a case of possession of child pornography was uncovered,” the police said. The priest was apprehended in Florida by the Caribbean Regional Fugitive Task Force. The Waco Police Department said that he will be extradited to Texas. Odiong had previously served in the Archdiocese of New Orleans before being removed as priest in December of last year due to controversy over homilies in which he claimed, among other things, that the Catholic Church was being taken over by "the gays." At the time, the priest was also accused of abusive behaviour; a Louisiana lady claimed in U.S. bankruptcy court that Odiong had committed both financial and sexual abuse against her. Prior to joining the New Orleans Archdiocese, Odiong served in at least two Texas parishes. On Tuesday, Waco police stated that during their sexual assault investigation, "the presence of other survivors was revealed." “Multiple women have come forward to tell similar experiences as the sexual assault survivor who reported the initial allegation,” the police department said. “Survivors’ experiences ranged from sexual assault and indecent assault, more commonly recognised as groping, and financial abuse, with some survivors experiencing every element of Anthony Odiong’s manipulation.” The police said they “believe there may be more survivors, and we wish to speak with anyone who [has] had similar encounters” with the priest. The Archdiocese of New Orleans issued a brief news release on Tuesday noting Odiong's arrest in Florida. The archdiocese “encourages anyone with any information to contact law enforcement,” the release said.](https://chronicle.ng/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/ezgif-6-4730550ede-300x200.jpg "Is Anthony Odiong still a priest after life in prison sentence over rape?")
The Federal Government has begun the proposed audit of the N2.7 trillion fuel subsidy claim by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, NNPCL.
The government stated that it had approved the Office of the Auditor General of the Federation’s engagement to verify the claims made by the corporation regarding the amount the government owes the oil firm.
His process was confirmed by the Director, Home Finance, Ali Mohammed, during the April 2024 Federal Account Allocation Committee meeting.
An audit firm, KPMG, had conducted an initial audit, reducing the claims from N6tn to N2.7tn.
The administration promised to deliver a status report on the matter at the FAAC meeting in May.
It was reported last month that the audit would span from 2015 to 2021, aiming to verify the authenticity of NNPC/Federation Account claims on the N2.7tn while considering hiring an external audit firm.
On May 30, 2023, the NNPCL Group Chief Executive Officer, Mele Kyari, informed State House correspondents that the federal government still owed the company the amount of N2.8 trillion that was spent on fuel subsidies, just hours after President Bola Tinubu declared that the subsidy was no longer available.
While acknowledging that the NNPCL covered the cost of the petrol subsidy from its cash flow, Kyari said the government has not been able to return the N2.8 trillion yet.
While acknowledging that the NNPCL covered the cost of the petrol subsidy from its cash flow, Kyari said the government has not been able to return the N2.8 trillion yet.
He said, “Since the provision of the N6tn in 2022 and the N3.7tn in 2023, we have not received any payment whatsoever from the Federation.
“That means they (the Federal Government) are unable to pay, and we’ve continued to support this subsidy from the cash flow of the NNPC. We are waiting for them to settle up to N2.8tn of NNPC’s cash flow from the subsidy regime, and we can’t continue to build this.”
The committee members also expressed dissatisfaction with the NNPCL’s reluctance to convert federation funds at the amended exchange rate of N693.50/$1.
They claim that NNPCL has refused to follow the CBN’s instructions to modify the Central Bank of Nigeria’s exchange rate from N436.38/$1 to N621.86/$1 in May 2023 and then to N693.50/$1 after that.
The committee members also expressed dissatisfaction with the NNPCL’s reluctance to convert federation funds at the amended exchange rate of N693.50/$1.
They claim that NNPCL has refused to follow the CBN’s instructions to modify the Central Bank of Nigeria’s exchange rate from N436.38/$1 to N621.86/$1 in May 2023 and then to N693.50/$1 after that.
The Vice Chairman of the Post-Mortem Subcommittee issued a warning to NNPC Ltd. regarding their refusal to convert Federation revenue at the revised exchange rate of N693.50/$1.
The warning stated that “If NNPC Ltd. continues to disregard the use of the agreed rate without presenting any authority to that effect, FAAC will be left with no option but to take appropriate action to recover the Federation funds.”
The minute further read, “At the last meeting of FAAC, it was reported that there was a review of the May 2023 CBN exchange rate from N436.38/$1 to N621.86/$1 and a further review to N693.50/$1 in line with the directive of CBN. NNPCL was directed to comply with the revised exchange rate of N693.50/$1 and re-compute all the royalties, taxes, and other revenue items for May 2023 and revert.”
The official reported to the meeting that NNPCL had objected at the subcommittee meeting in April 2024 that the proposed review would cause the business to refund N16,829,747,742.96 to the Federation Account.
He ended by saying that although NNPCL used the exchange rate to pay for the subsidy claim, the subcommittee had anticipated that the Federation Account would receive a reimbursement for the full amount.
He suggested that the FAAC make the decision in this case. He remembered that the subcommittee had reported on the impact of the “weighted average rate” on PMS computation and had found that, in contrast to the NNPCL’s claim of N1,675,920,811,819, the exchange rate differential for the period of June to December 2023 was N937,961,442,969.83.
![Rev. Fr. Anthony Odiong, a US-based Nigerian Louisiana Catholic priest, was arrested in Florida on Tuesday for possessing child pornography, according to law authorities. The suspect is reportedly accused of many other cases of sexual assault. The Waco, Texas, Police Department announced in a Facebook post on Tuesday that officers detained Father Anthony Odiong in Ave Maria, Florida, with assistance from the United States Marshals Service. Waco police announced in March that they had received "credible information" about a sexual assault allegedly committed by Odiong in Texas in 2012. “During the subsequent investigation, a case of possession of child pornography was uncovered,” the police said. The priest was apprehended in Florida by the Caribbean Regional Fugitive Task Force. The Waco Police Department said that he will be extradited to Texas. Odiong had previously served in the Archdiocese of New Orleans before being removed as priest in December of last year due to controversy over homilies in which he claimed, among other things, that the Catholic Church was being taken over by "the gays." At the time, the priest was also accused of abusive behaviour; a Louisiana lady claimed in U.S. bankruptcy court that Odiong had committed both financial and sexual abuse against her. Prior to joining the New Orleans Archdiocese, Odiong served in at least two Texas parishes. On Tuesday, Waco police stated that during their sexual assault investigation, "the presence of other survivors was revealed." “Multiple women have come forward to tell similar experiences as the sexual assault survivor who reported the initial allegation,” the police department said. “Survivors’ experiences ranged from sexual assault and indecent assault, more commonly recognised as groping, and financial abuse, with some survivors experiencing every element of Anthony Odiong’s manipulation.” The police said they “believe there may be more survivors, and we wish to speak with anyone who [has] had similar encounters” with the priest. The Archdiocese of New Orleans issued a brief news release on Tuesday noting Odiong's arrest in Florida. The archdiocese “encourages anyone with any information to contact law enforcement,” the release said.](https://chronicle.ng/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/ezgif-6-4730550ede-450x300.jpg "Is Anthony Odiong still a priest after life in prison sentence over rape?")
