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The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has arrested 12 suspected illegal Bureau de Change (BDC) operators in Lagos.
In a statement on Thursday, EFCC spokesperson Dele Oyewale said the suspects were arrested on Wednesday following credible intelligence and thorough surveillance regarding their alleged operation of BDCs without the requisite licences.
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“Items recovered from them include cash and exotic jewellery. The suspects are currently undergoing further investigation and will be arraigned in court soon,” Oyewale said.
Crackdown
Recently, EFCC has arrested and prosecuted several individuals for similar offences.
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On 18 June, Abdulkarim Auwalu was arraigned before a judge, A.O. Owoeye of the Federal High Court in Ikoyi, Lagos, on a six counts of operating a BDC business without a valid Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) licence.
The petitioner alleged that unknown individuals approached him with a business proposal involving a $10 million investment into Mr Auwalu’s science and hospital equipment business.
During the transaction, he said the purported agents demanded payments under the guise of statutory charges. Investigations revealed that Mr Auwalu made cash payments rather than using a financial institution.
Mr Auwalu pleaded not guilty.
In another case, another judge, Chukwujekwu Aneke of the Federal High Court, Ikoyi, on 5 February, convicted Faruk Umar, who had been arrested on 26 August 2024, for engaging in illegal foreign exchange transactions at the Eko Hotel area of Victoria Island, Lagos.
Mr Umar pleaded guilty to a one-count of conducting foreign exchange transactions outside the official market.
EFCC investigative officer Hamisu Sanni testified that Mr Umar’s phone contained over 40 conversations relating to illegal forex transactions.
Mr Umar was sentenced to six months imprisonment, a N50,000 fine payable to the Consolidated Revenue Fund, and forfeiture of his phone to the Federal Government.
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Separately, EFCC operatives in Lagos arrested 13 suspected fake BDC operators for operating without licences.
The suspects are Abdulahi Musa, Garba Abdullahi, Dauda Hussaini, Jubril Musa, Abdulwaheed Iliyasu, Abubakar Mohammed, Umar Saidu, Nurudeen AbdulAzeez, Hamidu Usman, Yusuf Isa, Musa Ishaka, Liman Makki, and Idris Mohammed.
According to the EFCC, the arrests followed sting operations between 10 and 13 May 2024, based on credible intelligence received by the Commission.
