The Federal High Court in Abuja has rejected the request by Professor Dibu Ojerinde, former Registrar of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), to dismiss the N5.2 billion fraud case against him.
The judge, Justice Obiora Egwuatu, ruled that there was enough evidence presented by the prosecution to require Ojerinde to defend himself in court.
The case was brought forward by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), which filed 18 counts of corruption against Ojerinde.
The ICPC claims that he was involved in multiple fraudulent activities during his time as head of both JAMB and the National Examinations Council (NECO).
Ojerinde was first charged in July 2021 and pleaded not guilty to all the accusations.
The charges include abuse of office and diverting government funds for personal gain.
The ICPC argued that his actions violated various sections of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act, as well as the Advance Fee Fraud Act.
Although Ojerinde tried to settle the case through a plea bargain in February 2022, the deal fell through, and the trial continued.
After the prosecution presented its witnesses and evidence, his legal team asked the court to dismiss the case, arguing that there wasn’t enough proof to proceed.
However, the judge disagreed.
Justice Egwuatu said that several witnesses had already testified and that their evidence was enough to connect Ojerinde to the charges.
As a result, he dismissed the no-case submission and ordered the former registrar to prepare his defence.
The case has been adjourned to July 16 for further hearing.
