The Federal High Court sitting in Ilorin has sentenced three men to varying jail terms for being in possession of counterfeit Naira notes.
The convicts, identified as Olaitan Dina, 46, an aluminium fabricator from Maraba in Ilorin; Opeyemi Jeremiah, a bakery worker from Oke-Ero Local Government Area of Kwara State; and Adebayo Mayowa Abiola from Osi, Ekiti State.
They were handed different prison terms by Justice Abimbola Awogboro.
SPONSOR AD
They were arrested by operatives of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps and handed over to the Ilorin Zonal Directorate of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission for investigation.
The EFCC said the fake Naira notes found in their possession bore identical serial numbers, confirming that they were counterfeits.
The EFCC subsequently charged the three suspects separately before the court on different counts. They all pleaded guilty.
During the trial, EFCC counsel Aliyu Adebayo presented Detective Abdulhakeem Sani Umar as a witness.
The operative told the court that the fake currency recovered from the defendants was sent to the Commission’s headquarters in Abuja for forensic analysis, which confirmed that the notes were counterfeit.
The prosecution tendered the fake notes and the defendants’ statements as evidence, urging the court to convict them.
In her judgment, Justice Awogboro held that the prosecution had proved its case beyond reasonable doubt.
“The issue of Naira counterfeiting is a serious crime against the law and the society. I wonder what this country is turning into. Many are involved in drug abuse, some in cybercrime, and now others in counterfeiting. The court must pass a sentence that will serve as a deterrent,” she said.
Justice Awogboro sentenced Dina to 18 months imprisonment, while Jeremiah and Abiola were each sentenced to 15 months imprisonment.
The judge ordered that the sentences take effect from October 15, 2025, and ruled that there would be no option of fine.
All counterfeit notes recovered from the convicts were ordered to be forfeited to the Federal Government of Nigeria.
