Operatives of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) have impounded 299,150,000.00 ($193,000) cash stashed away in a carton of yoghurt at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja,
Spokesman for the service, Mr Abdullahi Maiwada said in a statement yesterday that the find was made on Thursday, March 20 by officers of the Federal Capital Territory Command.
He said the interception was made possible through credible intelligence gathering and a vigilant baggage check on an inbound passenger.
The statement quoted the customs area controller of the command, Mr Olumide Adebisi as saying that the suspect, Kamilu Abdullahi Sarina (40), arrived in Nigeria onboard Ethiopian Airlines Flight 951 from Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
He said the officers conducted a detailed inspection, which led to the discovery of the concealed funds.
“Around the early hours of today (Thursday), we received an intelligence report, which proved very helpful. This afternoon, one Kamilu Abdullahi Sarina, who boarded Ethiopian Airlines from Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, was found concealing a total sum of $193,000 inside a carton of yogurt,” Adebisi said.
The controller said the undeclared cash violates the Anti-Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act 2022 and the NCS Act 2023, both of which mandate that any traveler in possession of funds exceeding $10,000 or its equivalent in negotiable instruments must declare it to the Nigeria Customs Service upon arrival or departure.
“The law clearly states that if a person has funds above $10,000, they must declare it to Customs. Failure to do so could result in the forfeiture of the money, a prison sentence of up to two years, or both,” he added.
Adebisi stated that the intercepted fund was formally handed over to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for further investigation and prosecution.
