Two jailed over currency counterfeiting in Lagos
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Lagos Zonal Command, on Wednesday, secured the conviction and sentencing of one Iliyasu Garba and Joseph Ude before Justice K.O. Ogundare of the Federal High Court sitting in Ikoyi, Lagos, for offences bordering on counterfeiting and possession of counterfeit currency.
They were arraigned alongside one Benjamin Opara on a five-count charge bordering on counterfeiting and possession of counterfeit currency.
However, while Garba and Ude pleaded “guilty”, Opara pleaded “not guilty”.
The prosecuting counsel, T.J. Banjo, thereafter called Adamu Yakubu, an operative of the EFCC, to review the facts of the case.
Yakubu told the court that the Nigerian Customs Service handed over one Ifeanacho Ugbor Marcellinus to the EFCC following his arrest for being in possession of counterfeit United States dollar bills to the tune of $10,000.
He noted that upon interrogation, Marcellinus said that he was not aware that they were counterfeit notes, confessing that the counterfeit currency was given to him by Joseph Ude for onward delivery to someone in Brazil.
Yakubu further told the court that Ude was subsequently arrested and he confessed that he purchased the counterfeit dollars from Garba at the rate of N1,500 per $1 at a time in November 2023.
During investigation, Iliyasu Garba also admitted that he was into currency counterfeiting, but claimed that he bought the counterfeit money from Benjamin Opara.
The prosecution thereafter, sought to tender, in evidence, their extrajudicial statements, printouts of the forensic analysis and the counterfeit currencies.
Justice Ogundare admitted and marked them as exhibits and declared the second and third defendants guilty as charged.
Counsel to the second defendant, AbdulMalik Ibrahim and counsel to the third defendant, Gideon Igwebuike, prayed the court to temper justice with mercy and to grant a non-custodial sentence or an option of fine.
Justice Ogundare convicted and sentenced Garba and Ude to six months imprisonment from the day of arrest with an option of fine of N100,000.00.
The court adjourned till April 22, 2024, for the bail hearing of Opara. The judge remanded him at the Correctional Centre.
