The Nigeria Customs Service, Murtala Muhammed International Airport Command, has announced the interception of $578,000 in undeclared cash from an inbound passenger arriving from South Africa.
The Customs Area Controller of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport Command, John Harrison, disclosed the interception while addressing journalists at the command on Friday.
Harrison, revealed that the suspect, Mr. Okorie Sunday, arrived in Nigeria on Wednesday, March 19, 2025, with the undeclared cash hidden on his body.
He noted that the passenger’s suspicious behavior upon arrival prompted officers to carry out a search, which led to the discovery of the money.
“The passenger was said to have declared $279,000 and hid $299,000 on his body, bringing the total money to $578, 000. This contravenes the threshold of $10,000 approved by law,” Harrison said.
Harrison further disclosed that the suspect also hid £100 and counterfeit $250 among the cash.
He explained that the money was jointly counted and verified by both Customs officials and operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission before being handed over to the anti-graft agency for further investigation.
The CAC highlighted that such unlawful behaviour undermines the integrity of the nation’s financial system.
Harrison stated that Customs has placed declaration forms at all airline counters to enable passengers to lawfully declare any cash in their possession.
While receiving the intercepted funds, the Acting Zonal Director of the EFCC, Ahmed Ghali, cautioned the public against such offences and advised that any cash exceeding $10,000 must be declared in accordance with the law.
Ghali added that such acts expose the country to the risk of money laundering and could tarnish its image by portraying it as a hub for illicit financial inflows.
He stated that the EFCC would investigate the matter thoroughly, including verifying the authenticity of the seized funds, before taking further investigative actions.
