Court Jails Woman For Smuggling $1.15Million, Nearly 136,000 Saudi Riyals Into Nigeria
However, she had failed to declare the large sum of money as required by law, leading to her immediate arrest.
A Federal High Court in Kano has sentenced one Hauwa Abdullahi Ibrahim to prison for smuggling an undeclared sum of $1,154,900 and SDR135,900 Saudi Riyals into Nigeria from Saudi Arabia.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Kano Zonal Directorate, secured her conviction after she pleaded guilty to a two-count charge of money laundering before Justice S. M. Shuaibu.
According to a statement released on Thursday by EFCC spokesperson Dele Oyewale, Ibrahim was apprehended at Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport by officers of the Nigeria Customs Service.
However, she had failed to declare the large sum of money as required by law, leading to her immediate arrest.
According to Oyewale, following her arrest, the Nigeria Customs Service handed her over to the EFCC for further investigation and prosecution.
The EFCC subsequently charged Ibrahim in court with two counts of money laundering under Section 3(3) of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.
During her arraignment, she pleaded guilty to both charges as they were read to her.
“In view of her plea, counsel for the prosecution, Musa Isah reviewed the facts of the case and tendered exhibits including the undeclared amount and subsequently prayed the court to convict her accordingly.
“However, Justice Shuaibu allowed an allocutus which opportune Ibrahim to narrate her story before the court. The convict disclosed that she was approached by one Nafiu in Saudi Arabia who allegedly solicited her assistance to carry along one box from Saudi to Nigeria and when she enquired about the content of the box, he allegedly told her that it was date and small amount of cash.
“Taking Nafiu at his word, she allegedly accepted to take the box. She further stated that Nafiu gave her a phone of one particular woman who will collect the box from her upon arrival in Kano,” he said.
Oyewale explained that on landing at the Kano airport, Ibrahim stated that she called the number given to her by Nafiu and the woman came, and she handed over the box to her.
However, after leaving the airport, she was recalled by the airport authorities to return with her passport to clear the box as she was the one that brought it to Nigeria.
He said, “Upon her arrival, she was arrested and was shown the contents of the box she flown in with.
“She pleaded with the court to spare her as she had no knowledge of the contents of the box and that she was deceived by the sender who told her that the box only contained dates and small amount of money.”
“In view of her plea for mercy, Justice Shuaibu convicted the defendant as charged and ordered the forfeiture of the undeclared money to the Federal Government in line with Section 3(5) of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act of 2022,” Oyewale added.
