A Lagos State High Court in Ikeja has sentenced Samson Orijugo, provost of Adonai Advanced Institute of Management, to three years in prison for forging an official result notification on Lagos State University (LASU) letterhead.

Delivering judgment on Wednesday, Justice Modupe Nico-Clay held that the prosecution proved Orijugo’s guilt beyond reasonable doubt, convicting him on a two-count charge of forgery.

The court found that in 2015, at Badagry, Orijugo produced a falsified LASU result notification for a student, John Chibuzor Okoro, misleading him and his family into believing Adonai Institute was affiliated with LASU.

Orijugo, who pleaded not guilty when arraigned on December 2, 2021, faced formal trial proceedings beginning March 8, 2022. During the trial, the prosecution presented three witnesses and seven documentary exhibits, while Orijugo testified in his defense.

Justice Nico-Clay ruled that the disputed notification was authored and issued by Orijugo and confirmed it was forged. Evidence showed Adonai Institute had no formal affiliation with LASU, contrary to representations made to the student and his parent.

The student’s mother, Patience Okoro, testified that Orijugo claimed to be provost of an institution in the Benin Republic affiliated with LASU. She said her son received a notification of result on LASU letterhead after completing his program.

Okoro recalled first meeting Orijugo on May 12, 2012, during a bus trip, where he promoted Adonai Institute, handed out flyers, and asserted its connection to LASU. Despite initial doubts as a LASU graduate, she was persuaded by Orijugo’s assurances and later enrolled her son, making several payments without receiving receipts.

She discovered the falsity of the documents in 2018 when her son applied for employment, causing him significant distress.

Another prosecution witness, Ojei Oziegbe, an Assistant Chief State Counsel at the Lagos State Ministry of Justice, testified that LASU confirmed Adonai Institute had no affiliation with the university.

The court clarified that the case focused on forgery of the result notification, not the issuance of a degree certificate. Justice Nico-Clay emphasized that Orijugo deliberately presented the document on LASU letterhead to give a false impression of affiliation.

Orijugo was convicted on both counts and sentenced to three years in prison.