The Enugu State Police Command has paraded a man, 24 years old, Mmaduabuchi Okonkwo, for Naira counterfeiting and circulation of fake Naria notes in Enugu State.
The Police Public Relations Officer, Enugu State Command State Headquarters, DSP Daniel Ndukwe, in a statement @Enugu_PoliceNg highlighted that Police Operatives serving in Abakaliki (AI) Road Police Division of the Enugu State Command, with the support of law-abiding citizens, on April 10, 2024, around 3.00p.m., arrested one Mmaduabuchi Okonkwo “m”, aged 24, of Mkpologu, Emene, Enugu, at the Old IMT Bus Stop, Abakaliki Road, Enugu.
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The suspect’s arrest, according to the PPRO, was sequel to his alleged possession and transacting in counterfeited Naira notes. A total of forty thousand Naira (₦40,000.00) suspected counterfeited one thousand denominated Naira notes were recovered from him.
The PPRO stated that a preliminary investigation revealed that the suspect boarded a minibus from New Haven Junction to Old IMT Bus Stop, Enugu, and gave the driver one of the counterfeited notes. The driver, however, scrutinized and observed that the currency was fake, thereby, raising an alarm that led to the suspect’s arrest.
“Upon interrogation, the suspect confessed to having paid the sum of twenty-five thousand (₦25,000.00) genuine Naira notes to his cohort at large for the counterfeited Naira notes worth fifty thousand Naira (₦50,000.00).
“He further confessed to having spent ₦10,000.00 out of the fake notes, remaining the ₦40,000.00) that was recovered from him,”the PPRO narrated.
He said that the suspect will be arraigned and prosecuted once investigations are concluded.
The Commissioner of Police in Enugu State, CP Kanayo Uzuegbu, has described the suspect’s act as a premeditated act of economic sabotage, aimed at inflicting social, psychological, and economic pains on fellow citizens.
Hence, he enjoined the citizenry to remain law-abiding and exercise caution while transacting with anyone they suspect to be in possession of counterfeited currencies.