A Federal High Court sitting in Kano has sentenced a woman, Hauwa Abdullahi Ibrahim, to prison for smuggling an undeclared sum of $1,154,900 and SDR135,900 Saudi Riyals from Saudi Arabia into Nigeria.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) secured her conviction after she pleaded guilty to a two-count charge of money laundering before Justice S. M. Shuaibu.
She was apprehended by officers of the Nigeria Customs Service at the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport for failing to declare the funds as required by law. The customs authorities subsequently handed her over to the EFCC for further investigation and prosecution.
The EFCC arraigned Ibrahim on charges under Section 3(3) of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022. Upon her guilty plea, the prosecution, represented by counsel Musa Isah, presented evidence, including the undeclared money, and urged the court to convict her accordingly.
During the trial, Ibrahim pleaded for leniency, claiming she had been deceived by an acquaintance in Saudi Arabia named Nafiu, who allegedly asked her to transport a box containing dates and a small amount of cash. She said she only realized the actual contents of the box after her arrest at the Kano airport.
Despite her plea for mercy, Justice Shuaibu convicted her and ordered that the undeclared money be forfeited to the Federal Government, in line with Section 3(5) of the Money Laundering Act, 2022.