NSCDC officer remanded in Suleja facility over alleged job racketeering

In a recent development at the Federal High Court in Abuja, Mrs. Tosin Olagunju, an official of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), has been remanded in Suleja Correctional Centre pending the hearing of her bail application on October 9th.

After Olagunju was arraigned on a variety of offences, including criminal conspiracy and false pretence to defraud job seekers, Justice Binta Nyako rendered this decision.

Olagunju, the sole defendant in the case marked FHC/ABJ/CR/183/2024, pleaded not guilty to the charges which allege that she fraudulently obtained N12.4 million from job seekers, promising them employment within the NSCDC.

The Inspector-General of Police is the complainant in this case. Shortly after Olagunju’s plea, the prosecuting lawyer, Princewill Eke, requested a trial commencement date.

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Defense counsel, M. A. Oloniruka, informed the court that he had filed a bail application just before the session began. However, the judge ruled that the application was not yet ripe for hearing as it was not in the court’s file. Oloniruka then attempted to apply orally for bail, which was rejected by Justice Nyako, citing procedural requirements that all applications must be formally submitted in writing.

The court subsequently adjourned the matter to October 9th for trial and ordered Olagunju’s remand in Suleja Correctional Centre.

In count one of the charges, Olagunju is accused of defrauding Nigerians between 2010 and 2023 under false pretenses, an offense punishable under Section 1(1)(c) of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act 2006, among other counts.

The case highlights the legal repercussions faced by individuals involved in fraudulent schemes targeting job seekers.