Justice Adenike Akinpelu of the Kwara State High Court sitting in Ilorin has dismissed a bail application filed by a suspected fake Chief Medical Director (CMD) of the University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital (UITH), Chidiebere Cyril Ndigwe, over his involvement in an alleged employment scam and obtaining money under false pretence.
In a statement by the head of media and publicity for the antigraft agency, Dele Oyewale, the Ilorin Zonal Command of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had dragged Ndigwe to court on a two-count charge of allegedly defrauding some job seekers by presenting himself to be the CMD of the UITH.
The petitioner alleged that Ndigwe and other persons, who are still at large, made claims on Facebook about the sale of employment slots.
According to her, candidates who are degree holders were asked to pay the sum of N400,000, while holders of national diplomas were made to pay N200,000 for job slots.
It was alleged that the defendant had obtained about N18,000,000 from job seekers before it was discovered that the employment offers were spurious.
Count two of the charge reads, “That you Chidiebere Cyril Ndigwe and others still at large, between 11th April 2023 and 25th April 2023, at Ilorin, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court with intent to defraud did obtain the sum of Six Million, Four Hundred Thousand Naira from Mrs Rukayat Joke Yusuf through Nkechi Nkwegu Onwoshi United Bank of Africa Account Number 2298797088 under the false pretence that the money was for the cost of jobs for graduates, Ordinary National Diploma, and National Certificate of Education holders, a pretence which you knew to be false and thereby committed an offence contrary to section 1 (1) of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act, 2006 and Punishable under section 1 (3) of the same Act”.
He pleaded not guilty to the charges when they were read to him.
Based on his plea, the prosecuting counsel, Mustapha Kaigama, filed a 32-paragraph affidavit to oppose the bail application of the defendant. He told the court that the defendant did not have a verifiable address within the jurisdiction or elsewhere to warrant his bail. He also disclosed that it took the Commission 23 days to mount surveillance for his arrest in Ebonyi State.
However, defence counsel, C.I. Chime, prayed the court to admit his client to bail, notwithstanding the submissions of the prosecution counsel.
Justice Akinpelu, in his ruling, said the defendant failed to provide enough evidence to persuade the court to admit him to bail. He adjourned the matter to a later date to be communicated to all the counsels.
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