The Jos, Plateau State division of the National Industrial Court of Nigeria, has dismissed a N25 million suit filed by Crown Flour Mill Limited against its former Regional Sales Manager, Pam Chayi, over alleged financial irregularities in a sales rebate programme codenamed “Condonation Scheme”.
Dismissing the suit, Justice Ibrahim Suleiman Galadima, in a judgment delivered on October 26, 2026, held that the company failed to establish the alleged contractual breaches, fraud and financial liability against Chayi.
The judge also rejected the company’s claims for N4 million and N10 million refunds, N15 million general damages, declaratory reliefs and costs.
Crown Flour Mill had accused Chayi of participating in the manipulation of credit notes and diversion of funds under a rebate scheme introduced in 2019 to boost sales of its poultry feed.
The company alleged that the scheme, which involved monthly rebates for selected distributors based on purchase volumes, was subsequently manipulated by some senior officials and employees to divert financial benefits to certain distributors.
It claimed that Chayi, who was responsible for managing distributors in his region, collected rebate credit notes estimated at N15 million and allegedly benefited from irregular transactions.
The company also relied on an alleged statement attributed to the defendant, in which he reportedly acknowledged receiving approximately N15 million from dealers and N4 million as appreciation from a superior officer.
However, Chayi denied committing fraud, insisting that the scheme was introduced and approved by his superiors and that he collected and remitted money in accordance with instructions received in the course of his employment.
He maintained that the N4 million he received was legitimate performance-related appreciation and not proceeds of fraud.
Chayi also challenged the authenticity of the statement allegedly attributed to him, arguing that it was obtained under duress during investigations.
In resolving the dispute, Justice Galadima held that the claimant failed to establish a reliable connection between the defendant and the alleged fraudulent transactions.
The judge ruled that the mere participation of an employee in a commercial arrangement does not automatically establish personal liability for irregularities associated with it.
The court further held that the disputed statement could not be relied upon as proof of the alleged admissions, noting that its authorship and circumstances of preparation were not satisfactorily established.
Justice Galadima also observed that the accounting analysis and transfer records tendered by the claimant did not sufficiently establish that Chayi personally authorised credit-note reversals or received and retained the sums claimed.
According to the court, admitting receipt of money does not automatically amount to admitting liability to refund it.
The judge stressed that the burden rested on Crown Flour Mill to prove its claims, adding that allegations of criminal wrongdoing directly in issue must be established beyond reasonable doubt.
He also held that the company failed to demonstrate that the defendant knowingly participated in a fraudulent scheme or breached his contractual obligations.
Consequently, all six reliefs sought by Crown Flour Mill were refused.
The court dismissed the suit on the company’s failure to establish the claims on the evidence and ordered that each party bear its own cost.