NSCDC Officer Jailed for Seven Years Over N12.2m Employment Scam

Our reporter

A Superintendent of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Mr. Solomon Ogodo, has been sentenced to seven years in prison for his role in an employment scam that defrauded innocent job seekers of N12.2 million.

The sentencing, which took place on December 9, 2024, was delivered by Justice M.S. Idris at the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court in Jabi, Abuja.

 

Ogodo, who was arrested by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), had been charged with forgery, racketeering, and fraud in connection with the scam.

According to the prosecution, Ogodo tricked several individuals into paying large sums of money under the false pretence that he could secure jobs for their relatives within the Nigeria Correctional Services (NCoS). The victims were led to believe they would receive employment offers through forged documents.

The ICPC's prosecutor, Mr. Hamza Sani, presented evidence to the court showing that Ogodo had repeatedly deceived victims by issuing fake provisional appointment letters, which led them to part with varying sums of money.

Ogodo’s actions were found to violate multiple sections of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act, the Penal Code, and the Advanced Fee Fraud Act of 2006.

Despite a plea from Ogodo's defense counsel, Mr. A.A. Nwoye, who requested that the court convert the prison sentence into community service, Justice Idris imposed a seven-year sentence on the defendant for the first three counts without an option of a fine. For counts four and five, which involved lesser charges, Ogodo was given a two-month prison sentence or an option to pay a fine of N5,000.

In addition to the prison term, the court ordered Ogodo to fully compensate his victims by refunding the N12.2 million he had collected from them. This restitution requirement was backed by Section 319 (1) of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA) 2015, which mandates compensation in cases of financial fraud.