Education

Nigeria University VC, Accused of N800 Million Fraud, to Spend Night in Prison

Published

7 years ago

November 25, 2016

The Vice Chancellor of the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, Olusola Oyewole, and the institution’s pro-chancellor, Adeseye Ogunlewe, will spend Friday night in prison despite being granted bail, PREMIUM TIMES has learnt.

The two men were charged to court alongside the university’s bursar, Moses Ilesanmi, on an 18-count charge of misappropriating N800 million belonging to the institution.

While Messrs. Oyewole and Ogunlewe were granted bail, Mr. Ilesanmi was not.

On Friday, the Abeokuta court where the three men were docked was filled up. The three whistleblowers sacked by the university joined scores of other university staff, SSANU, to attend the session. Members of Mr. Oyewole’s church were also in court.

One of the charges filed the anti-graft commission, EFCC, states:

“That you Senator Ogunlewe, Prof. Olusola Oyewole and Moses Ilesanmi between the month of September and October, 2013 at Abeokuta within the Jurisdiction of this Honourable Court with intent to defraud did deposit the sum of N400,000,000.00k (Four Hundred Million Naira) only property of Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta in a fixed deposit account without due process.”

Another charge reads: “That you Senator Adeseye Ogunlewe, Prof. Olusola Oyewole and Moses Olusola Ilesanmi sometime between the month of September and October, 2013 at Abeokuta within the Jurisdiction of this Honourable Court with intent to defraud did deposit the sum of N442,849,898.00k (Four Hundred and Forty Two Million, Eight Hundred and Forty Nine Thousand, Eight Hundred and Ninety Eight Naira) only property of Federal University of Abeokuta in a fixed deposit without due process.”

All the accused pleaded not guilty to the charges.

The prosecution counsel, Benedict Ubi and Festus Ojo, prayed the court to remand the accused in prison custody pending the commencement of trial.

However, the defence counsel, Wale Adesokan, Benjamin Ogunmodede and Lapite Ademola, asked the court to grant bail to the defendants.

The judge, O.O. Majekodunmi, having listened to the submissions of both counsel on the bail applications, granted the first and second defendants (Messrs. Ogunlewe and Oyewole) bail in the sum of N50 million with two sureties in like sum.

The judge said the sureties must be house owners within its jurisdiction and one of them must be a civil servant on grade level 15.

She also ruled that the defendants must submit their international passports to the court registrar, and added that the defendants be remanded in prison custody pending the perfection of their bail conditions.

Ms. Majekodunmi adjourned ruling on the bail application of the third defendant till Monday. She also fixed December 16, 19, and 20 for commencement of trial.

PREMIUM TIMES learnt that by the time Messrs. Oyewole and Ogunsewe provided evidence of meeting their bail conditions, the judge and other relevant court officials had closed.

The two men were subsequently taken to prison.

Mr. Ogunsewe, a former senator, is also a former Lagos State governorship aspirant.