The Federal High Court in Ikoyi, Lagos, has sentenced one Faruk Umar to six months imprisonment for engaging in illegal foreign exchange transactions.
According to a statement by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) this Monday via X, Justice Chukwujekwu Aneke delivered the judgement on Wednesday after Umar pleaded guilty to the charge brought against him.
Umar was arrested on August 26, 2024, alongside others, at the Eko Hotel area of Victoria Island, Lagos, following intelligence on the activities of illegal Bureau De Change operators.
Subsequently, he was arraigned by the Lagos Zonal Directorate of the EFCC on a one-count charge related to fraudulent forex transactions.
The charge read in part: “That you, Faruk Umar, sometime in August 2024 at Eko Hotel Area, Victoria Island, Lagos State, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, engaged in a foreign exchange transaction other than through the official foreign exchange market, and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 11(1)(a) of the National Economic Intelligence Committee Establishment Act, 1994, and punishable under Section 11(2) of the same Act.”
During the proceedings, EFCC prosecutor C.C. Okezie called investigating officer Hamisu Sanni, who disclosed that Umar admitted to buying and selling foreign currency without a Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) license.
“We subjected his phone to forensic examination, which revealed over 40 conversations related to forex transactions with other individuals,” Sanni stated.
The EFCC presented Umar’s confessional statements and investigative findings as evidence, urging the court to convict and sentence him.
In his ruling, Justice Aneke found Umar guilty and sentenced him to six months imprisonment, with an option of a ₦50,000 fine to be paid into the Consolidated Revenue Account of the Federation. Additionally, the court ordered the forfeiture of his phone to the federal government.