Businessman jailed for refusing Naira, selling diamond bracelet in Dollars

Justice Alexander Owoeye of the Federal High Court in Ikoyi, Lagos, on Tuesday, April 15, 2025, convicted and sentenced a businessman, Uzondu Precious Chimaobi, to four years imprisonment for refusing to accept the Naira as legal tender in a high-end jewelry transaction.

According to a statement by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Chimaobi, owner of Unlimited Jewellers Limited, was found guilty of violating the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Act, 2007, by insisting on payment in U.S. dollars for a Cartier diamond bracelet sold for $5,700 at his store located at Atlantic Mall, Chevron Drive, Lekki, Lagos.

Chimaobi was arraigned by the Lagos Zonal Directorate 1 of the EFCC on February 5, 2025, on a two-count charge bordering on his refusal to accept the Naira, Nigeria’s only recognized legal tender.

One of the charges read:

“That you, Precious Chimaobi Uzondu, on the 10th of December 2024, in Lagos, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, refused to accept Naira (Nigeria legal tender) by accepting the sum of $5700 (Five Thousand Seven Hundred USD) as a means of payment for a purchase of a Cartier diamond bracelet with serial number (12345678), and you, thereby, committed an offence contrary to Section 20 of the Central Bank of Nigeria Act, 2007.”

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Initially, the defendant pleaded not guilty, prompting the commencement of trial.

The EFCC’s first witness, Owolabi Oyarekhua Jude, an operative of the Commission, testified that the agency received intelligence on the illegal pricing practices of Unlimited Jewellers Limited.

According to Jude, a covert operation was carried out in which an undercover EFCC operative posed as a customer and purchased a Diamond Nail bracelet priced at $6,000, which was negotiated down to $5,700. The shop reportedly refused Naira and issued a receipt in U.S. dollars.

Chimaobi was arrested shortly after the transaction and taken to the EFCC’s office for further investigation.

However, during proceedings on April 14, 2025, the defendant changed his plea to “guilty”, prompting the EFCC counsel, H.U. Kofarnaisa, to urge the court to convict him.

Delivering judgment on April 15, Justice Owoeye found Chimaobi guilty on both counts. On count one, the court imposed a fine of N50,000, while count two carried a four-year prison sentence, with an option of a N600,000 fine.

In addition to the sentence, the court ordered the forfeiture of the Cartier diamond bracelet used in the transaction to the Federal Government of Nigeria.

The case underscores ongoing efforts by the EFCC and financial regulators to enforce compliance with the CBN Act, which mandates the Naira as the sole legal tender in Nigeria.