Cheque forgers arraigned in Bauchi

Two persons, Bello Mohammed Tukur, staff of Bauchi State Scholarship Board and Shamsuden Abdullahi, a Library Assistant were today arraigned before Justice Mohammed Garba sumar at the Federal High Court Bauchi for conspiracy, forgery and stealing by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission. The duo, which belonged to a syndicate were alleged to have sometime in 2012 conspired among themselves to defraud the Bauchi State Scholarship Board to the tune of about N8.023 million.

Discovery of fraudulent activities by the Scholarship Board sometime in 2012 indicated how massive withdrawals running into millions of naira were made with forged cheques and cheques not released by the board, from its account with the defunct FINBANK and GT Bank.

Further investigation by the Commission disclosed that Bello Tukur, who works in the Secret Registry of the Board, conspired with others, would collect students scholarship cheques, obliterate the writing, alter the original amount, inflate the face value of the cheque, and hand over to Shamsudeen Abdullahi and Kabiru Shuaibu (now at large) for cashing,  using fake student identity cards. Fictitious names were found to have been added to the payment vouchers by Bello Tukur. It was also revealed that many students were by this act deprived of their benefits, as some even graduated without accessing their monies, yet their cheques were later cashed by the syndicate.

A six count charge was brought, against the accused persons, one of which read; That you, Bello Tukur, Shamsudeen Abdullahi and Kabiru Shuaibu (now at large) sometimes between May and July 2012 in Bauchi, Bauchi State within the Jurisdiction of this court, the Federal High Court of Nigeria did fraudulently convert to your own use, monies, the sum of N8,023,440:00 (Eight million Twenty three thousand four hundred and forty naira only) property of the Bauchi State Scholarship Board and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section383 and punishable under section 390(9) of the Criminal Code Act, Cap C38, Laws of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (LFN) 2004, the accused persons pleaded not guilty to the charge.

In view of the plea of the accused persons, Alqasim Ja’afar, prosecution counsel applied for a date of trial. Counsels to the accused persons Mohammed Rabiu Musa and Dalhatu Sufyan Khalid made oral applications for bail, but this was turned down by the judge who asked them to come formally.

The case was adjourned till 17^th June 2014 for trial, while the accused persons were ordered to be remanded in prison custody.

Samin Amaddin MPA, Gombe Zonal Office 21/05/2014