THE Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has described the conviction of the suspended Dean of Faculty of Law at the University of Calabar (UNICAL), Cyril Ndifon, as a watershed moment in Nigeria’s fight against corruption, sexual abuse and abuse of office.
Speaking at a press conference in Abuja on Friday, the commission’s spokesperson and Head of Media and Public Communications, John Okor Odey, said the judgment delivered by the Federal High Court, Abuja, sent a clear message that “the rule of law will penetrate the deepest recesses of power and privilege.”
He added, “This verdict marks a watershed moment in the history of this commission and our nation’s fight for justice…It is a declaration that the rule of law will penetrate the deepest recesses of power and privilege.”
He also spoke about what he described as a disturbing pattern of harassment and manipulation during trial.
He said the court accepted the victim’s testimony that Ndifon groomed her under the guise of mentorship and eventually coerced her into sending nude images and performing repeated acts of oral sex on her.
“The testimony of the victim, Miss TKJ, painted a harrowing picture. As dean, professor Ndifon exploited her desperation for admission, a goal she had pursued for four years. His abuse followed a sickening pattern. He first presented himself as a ‘father’ figure, assuring her she was safe under his care to lower her defences.
“This guise quickly gave way to escalating physical contact, from a “side hug” to holding her waist, all the while dangling the promise of admission. He engineered situations to be alone with her, such as sending her friend on an errand and locking his office door.
“He escalated from persistent digital demands for pornographic images, which the judge noted continued even while the victim was at the hospital with her sick mother to violent physical sexual assault. In his office, he attempted to remove her trousers and forced her to perform oral sex.
“The depravity did not end there. In a separate incident in his car, he again forced the victim to perform oral sex, injuring her neck in the process. His response was not remorse, but a transaction. He sent her N3,000, a paltry sum he believed could monetise her pain and purchase her silence,” he added.
The ICPC said the case was triggered by widespread campus protests and a petition submitted to the commission on September 15, 2023, noting how Ndifon declined to honour its invitation, compelling investigators to obtain an arrest warrant and seek assistance from the Department of State Services (DSS) to arrest him on October 4, 2023.
“To protect the survivor, the court ordered that her real identity be concealed permanently and replaced with the pseudonym “Miss TKJ,” he said.
Odey emphasised that all investigative actions complied with the law, including respecting the defendants’ rights to counsel. He argued that the court’s acceptance of the digital evidence reaffirmed the strength of the ICPC investigative process.
He added that forensic analysis of the defendants’ mobile phones, obtained with signed consent, uncovered extensive WhatsApp conversations that corroborated the victim’s account.
“The judge described him as a “sexual predator” who was “never remorseful but tried to blame some other irrelevant reason for his arraignment.” He was found to have instilled fear in the student body and was condemned as a “disgrace to the community of learned persons.”
Odey outlined the court’s decision, explaining that the former dean was convicted on count 1 for violating Section 24 of the Cybercrime Act, 2015, after the court found him guilty of coercing a student, identified as Miss TKJ, to send pornographic and obscene images of herself.
He was also convicted on count 2 for contravening Section 19 of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act, 2000, for corruptly using his office to solicit nude visuals from the student in exchange for the false promise of securing her admission.
However, the court discharged and acquitted the second defendant, Barrister Sunny Anyanwu, of charges relating to threatening a witness and conspiracy to pervert justice. The court held that while a call was indeed made to a witness, the alleged intention was not sufficiently corroborated to meet the standard of proof beyond reasonable doubt.
“For the public to fully grasp the importance of this outcome, it is essential to present a clear and factual summary of the court’s decision. This verdict forms the foundation of our message today: that the rule of law will prevail and that evidence-based prosecution can and will succeed.
The commission said the judge noted that safeguarding victims from stigma was essential to encouraging others to come forward.
“The courage of the victim, Miss TKJ, was central to securing this conviction. Her detailed, credible, and consistent testimony stood firm throughout the trial, and the court rightly praised her immense bravery.
“We must commend the profound courage of Miss TKJ. In the words of the presiding judge, she can be a “shining examples for all those who are being sexually harassed to come out to report their oppressors. Her bravery has forged a path for others to seek justice,” Odey said.
The ICIR reported that The Federal High Court in Abuja, presided by Justice James Omotosho, on Monday handed Ndifon a five-year prison sentence with no option of a fine.
Recall in August 2023 that Female students of UNICAL’s Faculty of Law staged a protest within the school premises carrying placards that read, “Law students are not Bonanza, Prof. Ndifon should stop grabbing us. The Faculty of Law is not a brothel,” “Ndifon must go for our sanity,” among other inscriptions.
Videos of the protest went viral on social media, generating several reactions, including those from many ex-students sharing similar experiences.
Ndifon reacted to the allegations, describing them as lies and the handiwork of his enemies following his emergence as Dean of Faculty.
Meanwhile, Ndifon had been suspended for similar reasons in 2015 after a final-year student accused him of raping her in his office.
The institution suspended Ndifon some days later, over allegations of sexual assault against him by some female students and set up a seven-member panel to investigate allegations of sexual harassment levelled against him.
The panel, headed by Dorothy Oluwagbemi-Jacob, a professor of philosophy, was expected to carry out thorough investigations into at least six issues ranging from sexual harassment to results manipulation by the suspended dean and make appropriate recommendations to the management.
In October 2023, Ndifon was arrested by the State Security Service (SSS) at the request of the ICPC after he failed to honour invitations following allegations of sexual assault levelled against him. The agency was on the case till the accused was jailed.
Nanji is an investigative journalist with the ICIR. She has years of experience in reporting and broadcasting human angle stories, gender inequalities, minority stories, and human rights issues. She has documented sexual war crimes in armed conflict, sex for grades in Nigerian Universities, harmful traditional practices and human trafficking.