EFCC opens probe into suspect arrested with $265,000 cash at Kano airport

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) says it has commenced investigation into a suspect arrested with US$265,000 cash at the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport (MAKIA) Kano State.

The commission said operatives of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) intercepted the suspect, Adam Musa Adam, during a routine screening operation.

A statement released on Tuesday by the EFCC said Mr Adam, with a Nigerian passport, was arriving from New Delhi aboard Ethiopian Airlines Flight ET941, the NCS officials intercepted him on Sunday, 26 September.

“His luggage was flagged for secondary examination using Non-Intrusive Inspection Technology, leading to the discovery of the undeclared currency concealed among his personal belongings,” the statement said.

The statement said Customs authorities handed over the suspect and the exhibits to the EFCC at Customs area office in Kano.

During the handover, the Acting Customs Area Controller, Deputy Comptroller of Customs, Usman Umar Adamu, reiterated that the movement of foreign currency above the approved threshold without declaration contravenes Sections 3 and 4 of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act 2022, as well as relevant provisions of the Nigeria Customs Service Act 2023.

He noted that from January to date, the his command ” has intercepted undeclared foreign currency and other negotiable instruments with a total value of over N2.5 billion.”

He emphasised that the handover was in line with Section 4(f) of the Nigeria Customs Service Act 2023.

Receiving the suspect and exhibits on behalf of EFCC, the Kano Acting Zonal Director, Friday Ebelo, said the handover was a testament to the collective resolve to clean and sanitise the country’s financial ecosystem.

He described the event as an example of meaningful interagency collaboration, from the seamless activities at the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport to the strategic handover.

“The EFCC will conduct and carry out its established mandate by further investigating and prosecuting this case to its logical conclusion. In the life of a people, there comes a time that certain institutions become the beacon of hope by safeguarding our economy against illicit financial flows”, he said.

He expressed appreciation to the Comptroller-General of Customs, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, for creating an enabling environment for the collaboration.

He also commended Mr Adamu and his officers for their vigilance and commitment to enforcing the laws governing cross-border movement of currency.

“Let me, on behalf of my Boss, Mr. Ola Olukoyede, the Executive Chairman of the EFCC, thank the Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Customs Service, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, for the sustained partnership,” he said.

Enforcements against undeclared funds

The NCS has handed over to EFCC several Nigerians and foreigners caught with undeclared funds on their arrival in Nigeria in recent time.

Passengers travelling with cash above $10,000 are, by law, expected to declare it to airport authorities while travelling.

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In March 2025, the NCS intercepted $193,000 in undeclared foreign currency concealed in a yoghurt carton at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja.

In October that year, two men were arrested with undeclared cash of $6,180 and £53,415 at the Murtala Muhammad International Airport in Lagos.

Austrian citizen Kavlak Onal was intercepted with $800,575 and €651,505 in undeclared cash at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja, in December 2025. He was arraigned and remanded after pleading not guilty to the charges preferred against him by the EFCC.

In March 2025, Okorie Sunday, a Nigerian, was convicted and sentenced to six months in prison with funds forfeited after failing to declare $299,000 and €100.

Similarly, in May 2025, Agudosi Okechukwu, another Nigerian, received a six-month prison sentence for attempting to transport undeclared amounts of £8,020 and $704.

Also, individuals such as Ifunanya Phil-Olumba ($14,567, £1,030, CA$40) and Sierra Leonean Ahmed Shaw ($90,000) have faced court remand or ongoing trial proceedings.