Certificate Racketeering: Court Orders ICPC To Confiscate ₦10 Million From Cotonou University VC’s Account

The Federal High Court in Abuja has directed the confiscation of ₦10.7 million linked to Ecole Supérieure de Gestion et de Technologies (ESGT) in Cotonou, Benin Republic University.

The Federal Ministry of Education, in response to an investigative report exposing degree mills in Benin Republic, convened a committee in 2023 to investigate such activities in universities.

The spokesman for the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences (ICPC), Demola Bakare, revealed in a press statement on Monday evening that ₦10.7 million was traced to the account of Togboui Gnadzo Soncy Koakli, Vice Chancellor of the University.

Bakare stated that an ex-parte motion filed by Aniekan Ekong, Esq on behalf of the ICPC before Hon. Justice Binta Nyako, claimed that the money found in Zenith Bank account number 1007884857 was proceeds of degree racketeering.

The ICPC legal counsel informed the court that, based on intelligence, the ICPC investigated alleged criminal conspiracy and degree racketeering involving Togboui and his agents, who are the promoters of Access Institute of Advance Learning (AIAL) purportedly based in Kano.

Bakare identified the promoters as Mubarak Hamza Adam, Abdullahi Shehu Yusuf, and Abdulrahma Hadi Badamosi of the Federal College of Education, Kano.

The prosecutor stated that the group was under investigation for allegedly offering fake degrees to Nigerians for a fee, where they collected money from those wanting degrees from ESGT and shared it with Togboui.

Ekong added that while some victims paid in cash, others used bank transfers, with this information presented before the court.

Additionally, the court agreed to the Commission’s plea for the interim forfeiture of the ₦10.7 million.