Stash of $193,000 Discovered in Yogurt Carton at Abuja Airport

 

The Nigeria Customs Service intercepted a sum of $193,000 cash concealed in a carton of yogurt at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja.

In a statement on Friday, the National Public Relations Officer of the service, Abdullahi Maiwada, said the cash was discovered by officers of the Federal Capital Territory Command.

Maiwada explained that the interception occurred on Thursday as a result of credible intelligence gathering and a vigilant baggage check on an inbound passenger.

Olumide Adebisi, the Customs Area Controller in charge of the command, said the suspect, Kamilu Abdullahi Sarina (40), arrived in Nigeria on Ethiopian Airlines Flight 951 from Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

Adebisi disclosed that acting on credible intelligence, the officers conducted a detailed inspection, which led to the discovery of the concealed funds.

“Around the early hours of today, we received an intelligence report, which proved very helpful. This afternoon, one Kamilu Abdullahi Sarina, who boarded Ethiopian Airlines from Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, was found concealing a total sum of $193,000 inside a carton of yogurt,” Adebisi said.

The Central Bank of Nigeria's Currency and Accounting Committee (CAC) stated that the undeclared cash violated the Anti-Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act 2022 and the Nigeria Customs Service Act 2023. These laws require travelers carrying funds exceeding $10,000 or its equivalent in negotiable instruments to declare it to the Nigeria Customs Service upon arrival or departure.