The Nigeria Customs Service, Murtala Muhammed International Airport Command, has intercepted $8,065,615 cash at the airport.
The Customs Comptroller-General, Col Hameed Ali (rtd), announced at a press conference in Lagos Tuesday that the cash was intercepted in a car while it was about to be loaded into an aircraft.
He did not provide details of the aircraft but added that the money was stashed inside a vehicle belonging to the Nigerian Aviation Handling Company (NAHCO).
Ali said a suspect, the driver of the vehicle and a staff of NAHCO, were promptly arrested for interrogation in connection with the cash haul.
He said the money was wrapped in large brown envelopes with the names of would-be owners.
“From the day we seized this money, no bank has come to claim ownership. But our investigation will reveal the mystery behind the owners,” Ali said.
He continued that his visit today is connected to one of the critical roles customs play as an agency that acts as the watchdog of national economic security.
“We all know that countries of the world prosper through international trade. The era of globalisation has brought about an explosion in the exchange of goods and services across our borders.
“Its complexities and time sensitiveness has led to developments in the international financial system that guarantee safe, secured and fast cross border platforms for payment of goods and services.
“While provisions are made for various forms of international electronic transfers, exceptions are made for those who prefer to travel across borders with cash and other monetary instruments.
“When this option is used, those who carry physical cash across the borders are obliged by law to make declaration of such movement once the value is above the approved threshold,” he said.
He pointed that currently the value of the threshold in Nigeria was the equivalent of $10,000 and above.
He therefore said that all travelers in and out of Nigeria must declare any physical cash in excess of the $10,000 threshold or equivalent of other currencies or monetary instruments.
The Customs boss said that question was often asked, why customs or any agency of government need to know if a private person or company was taking out monies for their personal business ‘out of the country.
He noted that it was for the reason that illegal criminal activities like international terrorism, drug smuggling, arms proliferation are financed by illicit cash movements outside the recognised financial systems.
He added that proceeds from other criminal activities like corrupt enrichments from public treasury are similarly siphoned out of the country in cash.
“To enforce compliance with the monitoring of cross border cash movement, registers are maintained at all approved points of entry and exit, where voluntary declarations are recorded and maintained.
“The declarations are then followed up by the Economic and financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to ascertain any possible link between the cash movers and criminal networks.
“At the Murtala Mohammed Airport, the command put in place additional measures to monitor the implementation of the anti-money laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing operation.
“These measures include surveillance at the arrival and departure halls, increased patrols at the tarmac and cultivation of intelligence around its area of responsibility,” he said.
Ali said that sitting on such credible information, the command operatives at about 1200 hrs on January 16 intercepted illegal movement of foreign currency at the ‘E’ wing of the Tarmac.
He said on January 18, an inventory of the consignment was taken, and was witnessed by representatives of the Directorate of State Security, Customs Intelligence Unit, Anti-Money Laundering and Counter Terrorism Financing Unit, Customs Police and the suspect.
He added that at the end of the inventory taking, a total number of 20 sealed wraps were opened, counted, re-seated and re-wrapped under Video coverage from the beginning of the exercise to the end.
He pointed that the total intercepted stood at $8,065, 612 (Eight Million, Sixty-Five amount iThousand, Six hundred and twelve Dollars only).
Ali said that the consignment remains in safe custody, while preliminary investigations had commenced on the seizure, adding that the media would be updated as the investigations unfold.
He appealed to Nigerian travelers and those in business to declare any cash with them if they chose to carry such, adding that the threshold still remains $10,000.
- NAN