A man identified as Haruna Yusuf is now under investigation after he allegedly attempted to move multiple undeclared foreign currencies worth millions of naira through the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport.
The currencies — $73,300, £15,957 and 827,800 Saudi riyals — were intercepted by officers of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) during passenger screening at the airport between August 8 and 12, 2026.
The Nigerian Customs Service said the currencies were concealed inside footwear and sportswear shoes in two separate incidents.
It was gathered that on August 8, customs operatives discovered 827,800 Saudi riyals and $53,300 concealed inside a footwear found in an unaccompanied Saudi Air luggage during screening.
Five days later, on August 12, officers flagged a luggage allegedly belonging to Yusuf, who arrived on Ethiopian Airlines flight ET941.
The NCS explained that a secondary search using Non-Intrusive Inspection Technology uncovered $20,000 and £15,957 concealed inside sportswear shoes.
The suspect and the recovered currencies were subsequently handed over to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for investigation.
The Customs authorities noted that handing over the suspect and undeclared foreign currencies to EFCC was in accordance with Section 4(f) of the NCS Act 2023, which empowers the service to collaborate with other border regulatory agencies.
The NCS restated its commitment to deploying technology, professional expertise and intelligence-driven measures as well as collaborating with other security agencies to strengthen border controls and protect the integrity of Nigeria’s financial systems.
Speaking on the development on Monday, the EFCC said its Kano Zonal Directorate had immediately commenced investigation of the suspected currency trafficker.
The investigation, according to the commission, commenced after the suspect and the undeclared currencies were handed over to it by the Acting Customs Area Comptroller of the Kano/Jigawa Command, Deputy Comptroller U. U. Adamu, at the Customs Area Command in Kano.
The EFCC noted that the intercepted currencies exceeded the legally permitted threshold.
Responding after he received both the suspect and exhibits on behalf of the EFCC chairman, Mr Ola Olukoyede, the acting Zonal Director (Kano Directorate) of the anti-graft agency, Friday Ebelo, expressed profound gratitude to the Customs for their professionalism and cooperation with EFCC officers recently deployed at the airport.
Ebelo urged the public to comply with the law, emphasising that declaring currency attracts no penalty but only the source of undeclared funds may raise legal concerns.
