A Federal High Court in Abuja has ordered the interim forfeiture of N10.7 million traced to the bank account of Togboui Gnadzo Soncy Koakli, the Vice Chancellor of Ecole Superieure de Gestion et de Technologies (ESGT), a university based in Cotonou, Benin Republic.
The institution has been allegedly involved in selling fake degree certificates to Nigerians. ..Read Full Article
The court order came following an ex-parte motion filed by the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC) through its lawyer, Aniekan Ekong. The commission alleged that the money, found in a Zenith Bank account, was the proceeds of degree racketeering.
The ICPC launched an investigation into the alleged criminal conspiracy and degree racketeering involving Koakli, his agents, and the promoters of Access Institute of Advance Learning (AIAL) in Kano, as well as an individual from the Federal College of Education, Kano. The group was investigated for their alleged involvement in issuing fake degrees to Nigerians for a fee.
Presiding judge Binta Nyako granted the ICPC’s request for the interim forfeiture of the funds and ordered the publication of the preservation order in a widely circulating national newspaper, inviting any interested party to show cause why the forfeiture should not be made permanent.
The suit, filed on May 8, 2024, was brought pursuant to the Proceeds of Crime (Recovery and Management Act 2022). The ICPC’s action follows an undercover report by a journalist exposing the booming business of certificate racketeering in Nigeria.
This court order marks a significant step in the fight against degree fraud and the sale of fake certificates in Nigeria, with the ICPC demonstrating its commitment to prosecuting perpetrators of crimes against the country’s education sector.
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