– Onukaogu Onyinyechi Esther, Ebenuwa Chinazo Jennifer and Onukaogu Joshua have been arraigned by the EFCC over fraudulent activities
Esther allegedly input her name and two of her siblings (Jennifer and Joshua) into the IPPIS database as staff of Federal Ministry of Education and Federal Ministry of Works
– The offence is punishable under Section 1 (3) of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act, No. 14, 2006
– The defendants however have pleaded not guilty to the charge
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, on Tuesday, June 6, 2017 arraigned the trio of Onukaogu Onyinyechi Esther, Ebenuwa Chinazo Jennifer and Onukaogu Joshua before Justice A. S. Adepoju of the FCT High court sitting in Wuse, Abuja, on a 13-count charge of conspiracy and obtaining by false pretence.
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Esther allegedly abused her office while being a staff of Soft Alliance, consultants to the office of the auditor general of the Federation on IPPIS between 2012 and 2013, to input her name and two of her siblings (Jennifer and Joshua) into the IPPIS database as staff of federal ministry of education and federal ministry of works respectively, for the purpose of receiving salaries from the federal government.
The offence breaches Section 1 (1) (a) and is punishable under Section 1 (3) of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act, No. 14, 2006
Esther and her co-defendants were said to have drawn salaries as ghost workers from their ‘respective ministries’ for three years, to the tune of N9million before the law caught up with them.
The offence breaches Section 1 (1) (a) and is punishable under Section 1 (3) of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act, No. 14, 2006.
Count six of the charge reads:
“That you Onukaogu Onyinyechi Esther and Onukaogu Joshua between January 2014 and December 2014, at Abuja within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, with the intention to defraud, obtained the sum of N1,860,865.72 (One Million, Eight Hundred and Sixty Thousand, Eight Hundred and Sixty Five
The defendants pleaded not guilty to the charge
In view of their pleas, counsel to EFCC, Elizabeth Alabi, urged the court to fix a date for trial and to remand the suspects in prison custody.
But, the defence counsel, M. M. Hirse, informed the court that he had pending applications for the bail of the defendants.
Responding, Alabi urged the court to refuse the application adding that, “they were once granted bail and they jumped it.”
However, Justice Adepoju opined that “the purpose of bail is to secure the attendance of the defendants in court. It is their constitutional right to be granted bail.“
The judge, therefore, granted each of the defendants bail in the sum of N5million with one surety each in like sum. The sureties must be civil servants not below salary grade level ten.
The matter has been adjourned to September 21, 2017 for hearing.
Meanwhile, the defendants are to be remanded in EFCC custody pending the perfection of their bail conditions.
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Meanwhile, a report by Transparency IT Nigeria has listed some of the corruption-related court cases coming up on Tuesday, June 6.
On the list are 3 former governors and the former minister of aviation Chief Femi Fani-Kayode.
The ex-state chief executives are Ibrahim Shema of Katsina and three others who were alleged to have laundered the sum of N11 billion.
Chief Orji Uzor Kalu of Abia and two others who were alleged to have laundered the sum of N3.2 billion and Muazu Babangida of Niger and one other who were alleged to have laundered the sum of N1.46 billion.
However, watch the ZENITHBLOG.com TV video report of the anti-corruption walk of the EFCC that held in Abuja recently.
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