Court Orders Civil Servant To Return 11 Years Salaries Fraudulently Received

One Muhammad Nasir Ambursa, a former senior staff of the National Veterinary Research Institute (NVRI), Vom, Plateau State, was sentenced to six months imprisonment and ordered to refund salaries he had received for 11 years at NVRI.

The independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) released a statement on Monday stating how the convict perpetrated the crime.

According to the statement, Ambursa was arraigned by the ICPC over offences bordering on forgery and making false statement.

The prosecution counsel in proving his case had told the court that the convict had retired from the National Judicial Institute (NJI), Abuja, then gained another employment as a contract staff at Kebbi State Judicial Service Commission.

However, based on a false statement in his curriculum vitae that he had “linked” his service at the NJI, Abuja and the Kebbi State Judicial Service Commission, he applied for and got another job at the NVRI, Vom. 

This was done to enable him meet a requirement that stated that “a prospective employee must be willing to transfer his service” to NVRI to gain employment into the research institute.

The act is contrary to Section 25 and punishable under Section 25(1)(b) of Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act, 2000 and Section 138 of the Penal Code.

The trial judge is said to have sentenced the accused to six months imprisonment with an option of N100,000.00 fine on count one; and one month imprisonment with option of N50,000.00 fine on count two.

The court also ordered the convict to refund all emoluments he received in 11 years while he was in the service of NVRI, Vom, Plateau State.