A Federal High Court in Lagos has sentenced a businessman, Duru Ikechukwu Damian, to three months’ imprisonment for failing to declare $49,000 to the Nigerian Customs Service.
Justice Dehinde Dipeolu, sitting as vacation judge, also ordered the forfeiture of the entire amount to the Federal Government of Nigeria.
The conviction followed a one-count charge filed against Damian by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), to which he pleaded guilty.
EFCC counsel, Deborah Adamu-Eteh, led the prosecution and presented evidence along with a review of the case facts.
According to the investigating officer, Muhammad Adamu Timta, Damian was apprehended and handed over to the EFCC by the Nigerian Customs Service.
Timta testified that investigations revealed the convict was found with the undeclared sum of $49,000 during inward clearance at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, on August 11, 2025, while en route to the United States.
The prosecution tendered the recovered money as an exhibit, which was admitted by the court without objection.
In his judgment, Justice Dipeolu found Damian guilty of an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 3(5) of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022, which prohibits failing to declare cash exceeding the prescribed limit to the Nigerian Customs Service.