Police nab 13 for selling naira notes in Kwara

KWARA state police command has arrested 13 people for allegedly selling, hawking and trading in naira notes, contrary to provisions of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) ACT.

Parading the suspects at the weekend, spokesman for the state command, DSP Ajayi Okasanmi, said that the arrest was informed by the need to enforce the provisions of Sections 20 and 21 of the CBN Act which makes selling and trading of the naira currency a punishable offence.

The suspects, he explained, were nabbed at various points in the state capital following intelligence report. Okasanmi said the police was now poised to enforce the terms of the CBN Act in order to ensure that Nigerians don’t treat the naira anyhow henceforth.

“The police and CBN will continue the clampdown on perpetrators of this offence which is punishable by law. The general public is warned on the consequences of spraying the naira notes on occasions, soiling, writing on the naira, squeezing and all other abuses of the Nigerian currency.

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“The suspects will be charged to court at the conclusion of the investigation, while members of the public are advised to desist from acts of abuse of our naira as our currency is one of the symbols of our identity.”

The most senior of the suspects who appeared to be a coordinator of the group said they were working for a boss who was in charge of the business. Some of the suspects were observed to be teenagers who claimed they were ignorant of the CBN law and saw themselves as merely engaged in normal business.