Justice Yellin Bogoro of the Federal High Court in Ikoyi, Lagos, on Friday sentenced two women, Folake Adeoti and Modupe Adewuyi, to one year imprisonment each for unlawfully hawking Nigerian currency in violation of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Act.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), in a statement released on Sunday via its official X handle, disclosed that both women were charged separately with offences related to illegal currency trading by the Lagos Zonal Directorate 1 of the Commission.
Folake Adeoti, who had previously been convicted for a similar offence by Justice Ibrahim Kala, was arrested on March 21, 2025, while selling Naira notes worth N3,850,000 along Jobi Felé Way, opposite Regency Hall in Ikeja, Lagos.
Her charge stated that she violated Section 21(4) of the CBN Act, 2007 by hawking the said amount issued by the Central Bank.
Likewise, Modupe Adewuyi was apprehended the same day at Jobi Fele Street, near Regency Event Center in Alausa, Ikeja. She was found selling N1.6 million in N500 and N1000 denominations, also issued by the CBN. Her charge was framed under Section 21(4) and punishable under Section 21(1) of the CBN Act.
Both women pleaded guilty to the charges. Prosecution counsel Z.B. Atiku presented their confessional statements and the seized cash as evidence, urging the court to deliver appropriate convictions.
Justice Bogoro sentenced Adeoti to one year behind bars with no option of a fine, and ordered that her POS machine and the N3.85 million be forfeited to the federal government.
Adewuyi received the same prison sentence, but with an option to pay a N500,000 fine. Her POS machine and the N1.6 million recovered were also confiscated.
The EFCC reiterated its warning to the public against the abuse of the Naira, including practices such as hawking, spraying, and mutilating currency, which are punishable under existing laws.
