EFCC arrests woman for hawking naira notes in Lagos

Adeyinka, according to the anti-graft agency, was arrested and convicted for hawking naira notes in the Ikeja area of Lagos State.

In the statement on its Facebook page, EFCC stated that the convict was arrested while hawking a sum of ₦897,900, an act which contravened Section 21(4) of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Establishment Act, 2007.

Following Adeyinka’s arrest, she was arraigned before Justice Chukwujekwu Aneke of a Federal High Court sitting in Ikoyi, Lagos State on one count bordering on currency racketeering, an offence she reportedly pleaded guilty to.

The statement read further, “Following her guilty plea, prosecution counsel, C.C. Okezie, called on Olagunju Abdul Malik, an operative of the EFCC, to review the facts of the case.

“Abdulmalik told the court that the defendant was arrested on April 27, 2024, while hawking naira notes at 10 Degree Event Centre, Billings Way, Ikeja, Lagos, following credible intelligence received by the commission.

“According to him, the sum of ₦897,900 was recovered from her at the point of arrest. Upon her arrest by operatives, she was duly cautioned and she volunteered her statements.”

After the presentation of evidence, Justice Aneke sentenced the convict to six months imprisonment, with an option of a ₦50,000 fine.

The judge also ordered that the ₦897,900 recovered from her be forfeited to the Federal Government of Nigeria.

In a related development, five Bureau de Change operators were arrested by the Maiduguri Zonal Command of the EFCC.

The suspects were arrested at the Borno State Hajj Camp, situated at the Sir Kashim Ibrahim College of Education in Maiduguri following credible intelligence about their involvement in the sale of foreign currencies.

The anti-graft agency concluded that it would prosecute the suspects upon the conclusion of an ongoing investigation.