The Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offences Commission (ICPC) has arraigned a former staff of the Court of Appeal, Munirat Abdulazeez, before a Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court in Bwari over her alleged involvement in a ₦9.2 million job racketeering scam.
Abdulazeez, also known as Jummai, appeared before Justice Godwin Iheabunke on Wednesday, following an arrest order issued by the court last week after she failed to appear to take her plea in the matter filed against her by the ICPC.
According to the ICPC spokesperson, Demola Bakare, in a statement on Saturday, the defendant allegedly promised fake job placements at the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), and the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), collecting substantial sums from unsuspecting job seekers.
Investigations revealed that between September 2022 and July 2023, Abdulazeez allegedly obtained a total of ₦9,200,000 from eight victims under false pretenses.
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The commission further disclosed that Abdulazeez worked with the Court of Appeal between 2018 and 2023 before being dismissed due to her involvement in racketeering and auction fraud.
Victims of the job scam were listed as Musa Maude and his other friends, including Sule Sadanu, Haruna Lokos, Yusuf Musa, Mahmud Jibrin, Adama Maude, Shuaibu Musa, Ahmed Sunusi, and Aliyu Ahmed.
They were said to have paid various sums into the defendant’s Access Bank account under the guise of securing employment for them at NIMASA, CBN, and FIRS; contrary to section 1 (1) (a) and punishable under Section 1 (3) of the Advanced Fee Fraud and Other Related Offences Act, 2006.
When the two-count charge was read in court, Abdulazeez pleaded not guilty.
Following the plea, the ICPC counsel, Mr. Hamza Sani, applied to maintain the existing date of June 13, 2025, for the prosecution to present its witnesses.
A bail application on behalf of the defendant was not opposed by the ICPC.
Justice Iheabunke granted Abdulazeez bail in the sum of ₦10 million, with two sureties in like sum.
The sureties, the judge ordered, must own landed property within the jurisdiction of the court and must deposit their title documents with the court registrar for verification.
Additionally, the court instructed that the defendant must formally notify the court should she wish to travel.
The case was adjourned to June 20, 2025, to allow the prosecution to present its witnesses, and the previously set date of June 13 was vacated by mutual agreement of counsel.
