Prof. Cyril Ndifon, the suspended Dean of the Faculty of Law at the University of Calabar (UNICAL), claimed on Tuesday that the photos allegedly taken from his phone in connection with a sexual harassment case were edited. He made this assertion before Justice James Omotosho at a Federal High Court in Abuja while testifying as the first defense witness, represented by his lawyer, Joe Agi, SAN.
Prof. Cyril Ndifon stated that the pictures presented in court did not feature his face or that of the prosecution’s main witness, identified as TKJ. He asserted that he did not send or solicit any nude photographs and clarified that the phone in question was not the one he used to communicate with the alleged victim, who had a different number for their chats.
Ndifon claimed that the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) admitted in court that they had not requested the alleged victim’s phone to verify the authenticity of the images. Regarding “Exhibit H,” which included pictures and chats supposedly exchanged between him and the alleged victim, he insisted that those images did not come from his phone, pointing out that the document showed signs of editing. While he had seen the video slide, he again confirmed that neither his face nor TKJ’s was visible in it.
Prof. Cyril Ndifon informed the court that the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) did not invite him to observe the extraction of evidence from his phone, nor did he know who had notified the ICPC about the complaint against him. He noted that TKJ, who is now a law student at UNICAL, made her statements to the ICPC on November 9 and 10, 2023, after he had already been charged on October 30, 2023.
Ndifon alleged that TKJ had been admitted to the law program after testifying against him, despite lacking the necessary qualifications. He mentioned that she was listed first for supplementary exams in the Faculty of Law. He expressed disbelief that she testified against him, as he was no longer part of the Faculty during the alleged incident.
He firmly denied requesting or sending explicit photographs, claiming that he only knew TKJ through her uncle in the UK. He testified that her uncle had informed him about TKJ attempting to secure admission unlawfully by paying someone in the Vice Chancellor’s office, and he refused to assist her in recovering that money. Later, TKJ contacted him regarding her enrollment in a Diploma program, and he advised her on her studies for eventual admission to the law school.
Ndifon clarified that he had three phones and primarily used his iPhone for communication, not the Oppo phone that contained the contested images. He was cross-examined by the ICPC’s counsel, Osuobeni Akponimisingha, before Justice Omotosho postponed the trial until February 12 and 13 for further proceedings. The ICPC had re-arraigned Ndifon and his lawyer, Sunny Anyanwu, on charges related to alleged sexual harassment and attempts to obstruct justice.
The ICPC has alleged that Prof. Cyril Ndifon, while serving as Dean of the Faculty of Law at UNICAL, solicited a female Diploma student, referred to as TKJ, to send him her “pornographic, indecent, and obscene photographs” via WhatsApp. Additionally, Ndifon’s lawyer, Sunny Anyanwu, was included in the amended charges filed on January 22, 2024, for allegedly threatening one of the prosecution witnesses over the phone during the ongoing case against Ndifon. Both Ndifon and Anyanwu have pleaded not guilty to the charges.