Three Women Sentenced For Selling New Naira Notes At Parties

Three women have been convicted and sentenced by a Federal High Court in Ilorin, Kwara State, over their involvement in currency racketeering.

The Ilọrin Zonal office of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had dragged the women to court on a one-count charge of selling new naira notes to the public for commercial purposes.

The offence contravenes Section 21(4) of the Central Bank of Nigeria Act, 2007, and is punishable under Section 21(1).

The convicts, Asmau Sallah Wuraola, Owoduni Abdullahi Isa (Bolaji), and Shuaibu Rukayat, however, pleaded guilty to their respective charges.

According to one of the charges, Wuraola, “on February 17, 2024, at Arca Santa Event Centre, Ilorin, did trade in naira notes issued by the CBN.”

New naira notes recovered from the women at the point of arrest were tendered by the prosecution counsel, Innocent Mbachie, as evidence and were admitted by the court.

Delivering the judgment, Justice Evelyn Anyadike pronounced the defendants guilty and sentenced them to various jail terms with an option of an N50,000 fine each.

The court also ordered the forfeiture of N1,370,000 recovered from them and the destruction of their PoS machines.