One of Nigeria’s oldest financial institutions, Union Bank, on Friday night admitted ownership of a large consignment of cash which anti-graft operatives said they intercepted at the international airport in Enugu.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission announced in a statement Friday evening that two men were arrested at Akanu Ibiam International Airport with a combined cash of $2.8 million (over N1 billion at N360 a dollar).
The agency said the suspects mentioned their affiliation to Union Bank and Bankers Warehouse, a cash-in-transit contractor.
The anti-graft office said it was investigating the recovery as money laundering.

But Union Bank strongly denied wrongdoing, saying the practice was standard in the banking industry and its contractors were licenced by the Central Bank of Nigeria.

In a string of tweets directed at the EFCC on Friday night, Union Bank criticised the anti-graft office for being too hasty at disclosing the development to the public, “prior to the completion” of investigation.

PREMIUM TIMES learnt on Saturday from Tony Orilade, a spokesperson for the EFCC, that the money was intercepted at about 7:00 p.m. on Thursday, and it came barely a few weeks after operatives recovered about N940 million from a Lebanese and another $370,000 at Lagos Airport.
Mr Orilade said the EFCC made concerted efforts to get Union Bank to corroborate accounts of the suspects, but was frustrated for nearly 24 hours.

“We made serious efforts to get Union Bank officials in Enugu and other parts of the country to confirm details of the money, but there was no one ready to cooperate with us,” Mr Orilade said. “We then decided to count the money before the suspects and took it to the CBN in Enugu where it was deposited and records taken.”
Mr Orilade said as of 4:00 p.m. Friday, Union Bank representatives had not come around to claim the money or ask about their staff members arrested.
“It was after we released a statement to the media that they started calling and making noise,” the spokesperson said.
It was not immediately learnt whether Union Bank or Bankers Warehouse has reached out to the anti-graft office to sort out the matter.

Mr Orilade said the agency was unconvinced by Union Bank merely claiming ownership of the money on Twitter.

“Investigation is ongoing, which might prompt prosecution or no prosecution,” the EFCC chief said. “But we would like to let Nigerians know that when we see anything close to infringement of the law, we do not leave anything to chances.”


https://www.premiumtimesng.com/news/top-news/302426-union-bank-claims-ownership-of-n1-billion-recovered-by-efcc-at-enugu-airport.html

Anything to score political points

Indeed. Show me a singlesingle prosecution

Efcc Too Hasty

More than eyes can see.

I talk am say, EFCC to dey overzealous.

See the way they criminalized the innocent guys as if they were carrying cocaine.

I'm sure they must have demanded bribe from the money to look the other way, but when those guys resisted they started criminalizing them.

How can you say someone committed money laundry by moving his money from lagos-Enugu or vice versa without completing your investigation?

KillTheZombies:
I talk am say, EFCC to dey overzealous.

See the way they criminalized the innocent guys as if they were carrying cocaine.

I'm sure they must have demanded bribe from the money to look the other way, but when those guys resisted they started criminalizing them.

How can you say someone committed money laundry by moving his money from lagos-Enugu or vice versa without completing your investigation?

EFCC doesn't even wish to have anyone carry good money again. they wan turn everyone to smellos.

the bigman wey get money must show

Hungry Agency looking for xmass awoof.

Efcc were in a hurry

Efcc act of Media Trial, Media Judgement & Paparazzi not good.

sholatech:
Efcc act of Media Trial, Media Judgement & Paparazzi not good.

efcc isn't as independent as it was under Jonathan.

the Buhari govt is too stupid and useless in every judgement they make , imagine you know it's not illegal to carry such amount of money within the country and you have not even done your investigation and you rush to press to announce a huge catch just to score sensationalism , this is why EFCC persecution records remains in shambles

Beyonce bought a car of $2.5 million for jay-z and nothing happend
This country self

THIS IS NIGERIA

Ok

Well, they should still complete their investigation

mollymotion:
Efcc Too Hasty

What's hasty, reporting that a huge stash of foreign currency was nabbed from 2 people who clearly do not own the money and whose story doesn't really jive?

I like to live in a society where suspicious acts are made news.

You people are just backward and belong to the stone age

Obsessed with media trial

Purposeciti:


efcc isn't as independent as it was under Jonathan.

Please, remind us how independent Efcc was under Gej?

Efcc and gragra

If you are transporting something for any organization, the proper thing to do is to have documents indicating the ownership of such item.

Criminals that's how they seize people's money and then convert it to their own and use to be buying choice property for themselves.

Na buhari bank oh

If Efcc didnt make this public these same set of ppl commenting above will still ask why itntook them so long to do so.
What Efcc did was simply protocol.

They've contacted the bank and when they got no response, they went public. Only for the bank to start tweeting.
Is this a tweeting matter?

EFCC and stupid over-zelousness.See how they keep on disgracing themselves with the charade media propaganda trial.Ganduje did his own clearly in secret but nay they rejected it for want of more evidence.

These men would not have been confident to go through the airport with such a staggering amount of money if it were not a genuine transaction.

Most irresponsible! How could Union Bank use such means to move depositors and customer funds! One is in the hope that CBN properly sanctions Union Bank!!

Mankosi:
Criminals that's how they seize people's money and then convert it to their own and use to be buying choice property for themselves.

these efcc guys should know for a fact that Nigeria is porous. they have exposed those guys to danger by showing their faces on the screen. Some people close to them may start targeting even when there's no money on them. People noe begin to see them as moneyguys.

Purposeciti:


these guys should know for a fact that Nigeria is porous. they ha e exposed those guys to danger.

Is Union bank the only bank moving money?

How do others move theirs unhindered?

There is more to this story than what Union bank is disclosing. EFCC officials are not fools, they won’t have arrested the guys and make it public if there is nothing suspicious about the movement. I suspect the money was been laundered by the bank for a particular politician. There is a law that requires all travelers to disclose cash that is above $10k; did they disclose the cash before boarding the flight? I will wait for further disclosures from EFCC before taking a categorical position.

Nigeria!!!! I don taya. Just imagine how Buhari and his mad dogs rendered this guys unemployed. Increasing the rate of unemployment.

After exposing the identity of this cash carriers to the public. Will this guys be useful to the banks in doing money transit again.!!!!