Admin l Wednesday, October 04, 2017
IBADAN, Oyo, Nigeria – A Federal High Court sitting in Ibadan has sentenced a former Director General of the Institute of Agricultural Research and Training (IART),Oyo State, Prof. Benjamin Ogunmodede and former chief Accountant of the institute, Mr. Zaccheus Tejumola and Adenekan Clement to 40 years jail for diverting N177million from the N600million subvention released to the institute by the Federal Government.
Justice Nathaniel Ayo-Emmanuel sentenced Ogunmodede, a professor of agriculture and clergy in the Anglican Church along with Tejumola and Adenekan Clement to 40 years which are to run concurrently.
They had told the court that they used the fund to brine members of the House of Representatives and some staff of the Federal Ministry of Finance because they facilitated the release of the fund to the institute.
They were dragged to court by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in 2011 on a 16-count charge bothering on conspiracy, unlawful conversion and stealing of school subvention.
In delivering his judgment, Justice Ayo-Emmanuel said the convicts diverted over N177 million from N600 million received as subvention from the federal government to pay salaries of workers and execute certain projects in the institute, adding that they did not follow due process in some projects executed.
He ruled that evidence presented before the court showed clearly that they were guilty as charged and that bribery and money laundering are prohibited in Nigeria and punishable under the law, adding that the essence of punishment was to deter the commission of such offences.
“It must be borne in mind that the primary function of judicial sentencing is to serve as a deterrent for those with similar criminal tendencies, and for rehabilitation of the accused. The two reasons are sociological in nature.”
