A Nigerian frequent flyer, Yusuf Taofeeq Olanrewaju was today arrested at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport, MMIA, Lagos with raw cash of $767,500 by officers of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS). The passenger with passport number A03758685 was arrested during pre-boarding security screening at the E wing of the airport.
Public Relations Officer of the NCS MMIA command, Mrs Thelma Williams who confirmed the arrest said preliminary findings showed that the passenger who travels through the airport almost every other month with heavy raw cash was again on the verge of boarding an Emirates flight to Hong Kongthrough Dubai when the NCS officials conducted a search that revealed he had such huge amount of US dollars with him.
“Upon investigation, the passenger , Yusuf Taofeeq Olarewaju was noted as a frequenttraveler with currency as follows: on April 27, 2012, one hundred and eighty two thousand dollars , which he took to Hong Kong. On May, 26, 2012, he traveled with two hundred and twenty eight thousand dollars to Hong Kong. On July, 21, 2012, he traveled with three hundred and ninety five thousand dollars to Hong Kong. On September 15, 2012, he traveled with five hundred and twenty five thousand dollars to Hong Kong. On November 3, 2012, he traveled with ten thousand dollars to China. And this present case , January, 10, 2013, when he traveled with seven hundred and sixty seven thousand and five hundred dollars to Hong Kong”, the Customs spokesperson added. This frequency, she said raised the suspicion that the passenger could be a currency trafficker.
Williams said the passenger and his ‘baggage’ have been handed over to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), for further investigation and necessary action, even as she declared that Olanrewaju duly declared the money on the prescribed forms CDF1A and CDF1B but could not convince Customs officers how he came about the huge sum of money as well as justify why he has to travel with such volume of cash.
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