The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, on Tuesday, arraigned one Muhammadu Umar before Justice M. T. Salihu of the Federal High Court, Maiduguri on a 3-count charge of fraud to the tune of N4million.
Umar, an assistant director with the National Examination Council, NECO, allegedly approached the proprietor of Success Private School claiming that he had the instruction of his employer (NECO) to collect NECO SSCE registration fees of students in the school.
Without doubt, the proprietor knowing that the money if not remitted could lead to non-participation of candidates from the school did as Umar requested.
Count one reads “That you, MUHAMMADU UMARU, between January 2015 and February, 2016 at Maiduguri, Borno State within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, with intent to defraud, induced one Pastor Kofi George Gyimah, the Proprietor of Success Private Schools, Maiduguri, to deliver to you the sum of N3.72 million via your Zenith Bank (personal) Current Account No. 1002064892 under the false pretence that you were authorized to receive same for and on behalf of National Examination Council (NECO) being payments for June/July 2015 Senior School Certificate Examination (SSCE) Registration Fees and thereby committed an offence contrary and punishable under Section 1(1)(b) and 1(3) of the Advance Fee Fraud and other Fraud Related Offences Act, 2006 respectively”.
The accused person pleaded not guilty to the charge and the counsel to EFCC, Haruna Abdulkadir prayed the court to fix a date for trial and to remand the accused person in the prison custody.
However, the defendant’s counsel, B. K. Alhaji, through an oral application prayed the court to admit his client to bail.
Justice Salihu ordered the defendant to be remanded in prison custody pending hearing of the bail application on July 6, 2017.