According to a video shared by AIT on its X handle on Wednesday, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has purportedly been surrounded to apprehend the ex-governor of Kogi State in Abuja.
Further details will be provided soon.
Breaking: EFCC lays siege to arrest former Kogi Governor, Yahaya Bello in Abuja pic.twitter.com/FUpHSSXIC6
— AIT (@AIT_Online) April 17, 2024
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Renowned Instagram personality Pascal Okechukwu, also known as Cubana Chief Priest, has entered a plea of not guilty in response to allegations of naira abuse. He faced a three-count charge brought against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and appeared before Justice Kehinde Ogundare at the Federal High Court in Lagos on Wednesday.
The charges stemmed from accusations that Cubana Chief Priest engaged in naira abuse at a social gathering, a purported violation of the Central Bank Act of 2007. Following his plea of not guilty, the court granted him bail set at ₦10 million, requiring two reliable sureties employed at federal or state government levels, with a minimum grade level of 16 and ownership of landed property verified by the court. Additionally, Cubana Chief Priest must surrender his travel passport to the court's custody.
He has seven days to fulfill the bail conditions, during which he has been released to his lawyer's custody under an undertaking to ensure his presence. Failure to comply could result in remand in a correctional facility.
The charges detail instances where Cubana Chief Priest allegedly dispersed funds of N500 denomination during social events, violating the Central Bank Act. The defendant also indicated his intention to contest the court's jurisdiction over the matter, prompting Justice Ogundare to schedule a hearing for May 2nd.
This development follows the recent arraignment of controversial figure Idris Okuneye, popularly known as Bobrisky, by the EFCC on similar charges, resulting in a six-month jail sentence.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) lodged a six-count charge against Idris Olanrewaju Okuneye, famously known as Bobrisky, on Thursday.
Bobrisky is slated to appear before Justice Abimbola Awogboro of the Federal High Court, Lagos, for arraignment on Friday (today).
The charges encompass various alleged offenses, including abuse of the naira and purported money laundering.
As outlined by the EFCC Prosecutor, Senior Advocate of Nigeria Rotimi Oyedepo, along with seven other legal representatives, the accusations detail Bobrisky's actions at social events.
In the first count, Bobrisky is accused of tampering with N400,000 by spraying it while dancing at a gathering at the IMAX Circle Mall, Lekki, Lagos, on March 24, 2024. This contravenes Section 21(1) of the Central Bank Act of 2007.
The subsequent counts detail similar incidents where Bobrisky allegedly tampered with varying amounts of money at different events.
Additionally, Bobrisky is charged with failing to disclose the activities of his company, Bob Express, to the Special Control Unit Against Money Laundering. This is in relation to transactions totaling N127.7 million and N53 million made between September 1, 2021, and April 4, 2024.
These actions are deemed offenses under the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act and are punishable accordingly.
A Federal High Court in Abuja has issued an order directing Binance Holdings Limited to furnish the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) with comprehensive information regarding Nigerian users trading on its platform.
The court's decision stemmed from an ex-parte motion filed by the EFCC, seeking data on Nigerians engaged in trading activities on Binance. The suit, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/259/2024 and dated February 29, was filed in accordance with relevant sections of the Economic and Financial Crimes Establishment Act, 2004, and the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022 (as amended).
In an affidavit supporting the motion, deposed by EFCC operative Hamma Bello, it was revealed that the commission's Special Investigation Team received intelligence suggesting illicit activities, including money laundering and terrorism financing, being conducted on the Binance cryptocurrency exchange platform. The investigation uncovered users manipulating prices and causing market distortions, leading to the devaluation of the Naira against other currencies.
Despite requests to address these concerns, Binance allegedly failed to take adequate action. The affidavit further disclosed that trading volume from Nigeria on the platform in 2023 alone amounted to $21.6 billion.
Justice Emeka Nwite, in a ruling delivered on February 29, granted the interim order, compelling Binance to provide the EFCC with comprehensive data on Nigerian traders using its platform.
Binance is an online exchange facilitating cryptocurrency trading. Concerns about its operations arose following disclosures made by the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Olayemi Cardoso, who revealed that over $26 billion had been transacted through Binance without proper oversight in the past year.
Furthermore, the Financial Times reported on February 28 that two executives of Binance were arrested upon their arrival in Nigeria due to a ban on their website. Subsequently, on March 12, 2024, the EFCC requested data on the top 100 users in Nigeria and transaction histories for the past six months from Binance, sparking negotiations between the company and Nigerian authorities.
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