The Federal High Court in Abuja has handed a five-year prison sentence to Prof. Cyril Ndifon, the suspended Dean of the Faculty of Law at the University of Calabar (UNICAL), after finding him guilty of sexually harassing a female student.
Justice James Omotosho delivered the verdict on Monday, ruling that the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Offences Commission (ICPC) had proven two of the four counts against Ndifon beyond a reasonable doubt. The court assigned a two-year term for the first count and a five-year term for the second, to run concurrently, with no option for a fine.
Ndifon’s former lawyer, Sunny Anyanwu, who faced allegations of attempting to obstruct justice by intimidating a key witness, was acquitted. The judge concluded that the prosecution could not establish his involvement in the third and fourth counts of the amended charges.
The amended four-count charge, filed on January 19, 2024, accused Ndifon of demanding indecent photographs from a diploma student known as TKJ and soliciting sexual favours in exchange for admission into the law programme.
During the trial, Ndifon testified in his defence, and a forensic analyst from the Office of the National Security Adviser, CSP Babagana Mingali, provided evidence before the court. Justice Omotosho found that Ndifon abused his position as Dean to exploit a student seeking academic admission, concluding that the evidence supported the convictions.
