The Abuja Division of the Federal High Court, on Tuesday, remanded the former Registrar of the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board, JAMB, in prison custody.
The trial judge, Obiora Egwuatu, turned down the oral application for bail by defence counsel, P.O Olorunishola, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria.
Oyerinde was in the charge marked FHC/ABJ/CR/97/2021 alleged to have committed multiple frauds while he held sway at JAMB.
The ex-JAMB Registrar who denied all the charges filed by Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), was ordered to be taken to custody till Thursday when his lawyer, Peter Olorunmisola (SAN), will formally apply for his bail.
Efforts made to convince Justice Obiora Egwuatu to allow Ojerinde continue with the administrative bail granted him by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) was turned down on the ground that such was not grantable having been arraigned in court.
Similarly, plea that he be allowed home to enable him attend another trial in Minna, Niger State, on criminal charges was also rejected by the court.
It would be recalled that the ICPC arrested Mr Ojerinde in March 2021 and held him on a remand warrant for allegedly misappropriating N900 million.
According to a statement posted on the commission’s website, Mr Ojerinde allegedly perpetrated the fraud as JAMB registrar from April 10, 2012 to August 1, 2016, and the Registrar of the National Examination Council (NECO) between 1999 and 2007.
The commission said the suspect was interrogated on various allegations of multiple identities, abuse of office, money laundering, tax evasion, making false statements, and awarding fraudulent contracts to untraceable shell companies.
The statement had read in part, “Professor Ojerinde, who was arrested on March 15, 2021, in Abuja, by operatives of ICPC, is alleged to have committed multiple frauds while heading JAMB and the National Examination Council (NECO).
“He has been detained by the commission for questioning over allegations of multiple identities, abuse of office, money laundering, tax evasion and making false statements to public officials.”
