From Abdulkadir Lawal Bichi
The Enugu Zonal Command of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on Thursday, December 12, 2024, arraigned two employees of a new-generation bank, Ekpe Anayaoha Okoronkwo and Umeonuoha Onyinye, before Justice Mohammed Garba Umar of the Federal High Court in Enugu.
The duo faced charges of alleged currency racketeering involving N500,000 in newly-minted Naira notes.
The defendants were charged with selling N500,000 worth of Two Hundred Naira (₦200) denominations issued by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to one Husseini Ibrahim in October 2024.
The charge read:
"That you, Ekpe Anayaoha Okoronkwo and Umeonuoha Onyinye, sometime in October 2024 at Enugu, Enugu State, within the jurisdiction of the Federal High Court of Nigeria, did sell a total sum of Five Hundred Thousand Naira (N500,000) mints in Two Hundred Naira Notes (N200) denominations, issued by the Central Bank of Nigeria to one Husseini Ibrahim and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 21 (4) of the Central Bank of Nigeria Act, 2007 and punishable under Section 21 (1) of the same Act."
While Okoronkwo pleaded guilty to the charge, Onyinye entered a plea of not guilty.
The prosecution counsel, Chief Superintendent of the EFCC (CSE) Rotimi Ajobiewe, requested a date to review the facts for Okoronkwo’s conviction and sentencing. For Onyinye, the prosecution sought a date for trial to present evidence.
Counsel to Onyinye, C.N. Agama, applied for her remand at the EFCC custody pending the hearing of her bail application.
Justice Umar adjourned the case to January 15, 2025, for the hearing of Onyinye’s bail application and sentencing of Okoronkwo. Both defendants were remanded in the Enugu State Correctional Facility.
The suspects were apprehended on November 15, 2024, at their workplace on Okpara Avenue, Enugu, following intelligence reports linking them to the illegal sale of Naira mints within the Enugu metropolis. Investigations revealed they sold the N500,000 worth of new Naira notes to a private individual, violating the Central Bank of Nigeria Act, 2007.
