The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on Friday arraigned a university lecturer, Moses Adoga, for an alleged N19 million fraud.
In a statement signed by the agency’s spokesperson, Tony Orilade, it said Mr Adoga was arraigned on a one-count charge before Justice Simon Aboki of the Nasarawa State High Court.
According to the statement, Mr Adoga, a lecturer with the Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Natural and Applied Science, Nasarawa State University, Keffi, illegally converted N19.7 million from the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFUND), study grant for a PhD in Cellular and Molecular Biology at Bangor University, United Kingdom, in 2010 to personal use.
The agency said Mr Adoga’s offence is punishable under Section 312 of Penal Code Laws.
According to the statement, Mr Adoga obtained this money under disguise of using it for study, ”which he never presented any evidence of going or graduating as he claimed and yet he kept giving excuses.”
”Analysis of his statement of the account showed that the suspect diverted the funds for business and sundry purposes other than the reason why the funds were given.
”Eight years after the grant of the money to the suspect, he could not produce PhD certificate from any University.”
According to the statement, Mr Adoga pleaded ‘not guilty’.
Given his plea, prosecution counsel, Mary Onoja, asked the court for a date for the commencement of trial.
She also asked that for the defendant to be remanded in prison custody pending the hearing of his bail application.
However, the defence counsel, S. K. Sheltu, applied for bail for his client.
Justice Aboki granted the defendant bail in the sum of N2 million with two sureties in like sum.
The EFCC said Mr Adoga is to surrender his international passport to the registrar of the Court.
Meanwhile, the judge has adjourned the matter till July 10, for the commencement of trial.