By our Reporter
The Federal High Court in Abuja on Monday sentenced suspended University of Calabar Law Dean, Prof. Cyril Ndifon, to five years in prison without an option of fine after finding him guilty of sexual harassment.
Justice James Omotosho ruled that the ICPC proved counts one and two beyond reasonable doubt.
Ndifon received two years for count one and five years for count two, to run concurrently. The court, however, discharged and acquitted Ndifon’s former lawyer, Sunny Anyanwu, of charges against him, holding that the ICPC failed to link him to the offences in counts three and four.
The amended charge dated January 19, 2024, contained four counts against Ndifon and Anyanwu. Ndifon was initially the sole defendant but Anyanwu was later joined over allegations that he attempted to pervert justice by calling and threatening a star witness during the case.
Counts one and two accused Ndifon of sexually harassing female students. The ICPC said that while serving as Dean of Law, he asked a female diploma student, identified as TKJ, to send indecent photos via WhatsApp and repeatedly demanded a sexual act in exchange for her admission into the law programme.
Ndifon testified in his defence, while a forensic analyst from the Office of the National Security Adviser, CSP Babagana Mingali, also took the stand.
Justice Omotosho held that the prosecution proved the offences, stating that Ndifon abused his office and took undue advantage of a student desperate for admission.
