The Kogi State High Court has uncovered N4.8m in frauds allegedly carried out by some judiciary workers in the state.

This was disclosed in a report submitted to the Acting Chief Judge, Justice Josiah Majebi, by the Chairman of the Revenue Task Force, Sunday Paul.

The task force was inaugurated by Justice Majebi to unravel possible fraudulent activities in the generation of revenue by the Kogi State High Court.

Paul, while presenting his recent findings to the Acting Chief Judge, said, “In a report dated November 9, 2022, and captioned, ‘Fraudulent Practice,’ we gathered, among other findings, that in the monthly reconciliation of accounts, the sum of N2.4m said to have been paid into the court’s account was not paid despite evidence of payment showing the same.

“On October 28, 2022, the sum of N2,400,000 was paid as judgment debt revenue, and a bank teller was presented as evidence of payment. I went to the bank on November 7, 2022, to collect bank statements for my monthly reconciliation for October 2022. Amazingly, the said N2.4 million was not in the bank statement.

“Out of curiosity, we consulted the court’s relevant department before revisiting the bank, where we further confirmed that there were other similar unremitted transactions. I immediately informed the process unit where the money is supposed to come from. I photocopied the teller, and I took it to the bank for verification. My verification reveals that the money was not paid into the revenue account.

“The stamp on the teller, and the signature on it, were all fake, tallying with those of previous years as an indication of how long the fraud has been perpetrated.”

While responding, Justice Majebi said the matter was already before the police for a thorough investigation.