Forensic Accounting as a Tool for Fraud Detection and Prevention in Business Organizations¬

The study examined forensic accounting as a tool for fraud detection and prevention in business organizations in Nigeria. The data adopted were gotten from 15 Nigerian companies chosen based on their proficiency in forensic accounting. A simple random selection of 15 specialists from each firm, consisting of auditors and accountants from the 15 firms in Nigeria, was used to choose the sample size of (150) responses. The white-collar crime theory was used in this study and a structured questionnaire with questions and a Likert scale was given to respondents in order to collect data from the chosen firms for this study. Out of 170 administered questionnaires, 150 were returned and were determined to be useable for a return rate of 94%. The statistical tool used are exploratory data analysis (respondent demographic statistics) and chi-square. The result of the study indicates that forensic accounting could help detect and prevent fraud in the organizations being studied. The study proposes that the services of forensic accountants should be employed in companies so as to detect fraud and reduce financial crime rate in Nigeria