Achievers University, Owo, Ondo State, has uncovered an alleged N457.5 million tuition payment fraud involving a former female staff member, students, and several accomplices within and outside the institution.
The development followed the conclusion of the university’s Students’ Fees Payment Audit Exercise, which reportedly exposed widespread irregularities in the institution’s payment system across three academic sessions.
Acting Vice-Chancellor of the institution, Prof. Oyesoji Aremu, disclosed the findings in a statement released on Monday, revealing that no fewer than 320 students allegedly paid their tuition fees into the personal bank account of a former bursary staff member instead of the university’s official account.
According to the university, the suspect, said to be an alumna of the institution’s Department of Accounting, allegedly manipulated the students’ payment portal and fraudulently cleared students for financial registration despite the university not receiving the payments.
“The exercise revealed that the fraud was masterminded by a female worker who graduated from the Department of Accounting and was later employed in the university bursary,” the statement said.
“She resigned from the services of the university in April 2025.”
The university management explained that the alleged fraud affected the 2023/2024, 2024/2025, and 2025/2026 academic sessions, with students reportedly persuaded to bypass official payment channels through promises of discounted school fees and commissions.
According to the statement, the total amount involved in the scam stands at N457,508,645.
The institution further alleged that 11 staff members and 34 students acted as agents for the suspect by recruiting students into the illegal payment arrangement.
“One external collaborator working with the Federal Medical Centre, Owo, was also implicated for allegedly serving as an agent in the fraudulent activities,” the statement added.
Prof. Aremu stated that all implicated students would appear before the Students’ Disciplinary Committee, while staff members linked to the fraud would face the university’s Senior Staff Disciplinary Committee.
“The mastermind is currently under police investigation and will face prosecution,” the university said.
The acting Vice-Chancellor also disclosed that the audit exercise would continue, noting that fee payments made by students who graduated within the last two academic sessions would undergo further scrutiny.
He assured members of the university community that the institution remained committed to transparency throughout the investigation process.
“We have secured the approval of the university council to ensure absolute transparency in the handling of the investigation and dissemination of information in order to eliminate rumours and misinformation,” the statement added.
