Appeal Court upholds Ndifon’s two-year jail term

The Court of Appeal in Abuja has upheld the two-year jail term handed to Cyril Osim Ndifon, the former Dean of Law at the University of Calabar, over a cybercrime-related conviction involving a female student.

The ruling keeps in place the Federal High Court’s conviction on the first count, which accused Ndifon of soliciting pornographic, indecent and obscene photographs through electronic communication while he held authority in the faculty.

The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission said the appellate decision was delivered on September 18, 2026, in Appeal No. CA/ABJ/CR/1798/2025. The trial court, presided over by Justice James Omotosho, had convicted Ndifon on November 17, 2025, and sentenced him to two years in prison without an option of fine on Count One.

Premium Times reported that the Court of Appeal affirmed the conviction and sentence on that count after reviewing Ndifon’s challenge to the trial court’s decision. Daily Post also reported that the ICPC’s evidence included electronic communications between Ndifon and the student.

The appeal court took a different position on a second count, which accused Ndifon of conferring an undue advantage under the ICPC Act. It held that the Federal High Court lacked jurisdiction over that count and directed that the matter be pursued before the High Court of Cross River State.

The ICPC said it was taking steps to challenge that part of the judgment. It added that the ruling on the second count did not affect the confirmed conviction and two-year sentence on the cybercrime count.

Sources: Daily Post, Premium Times