Customs arrest passenger with $540,000 at Murtala Muhammed International Airport

Murtala Muhammed International Airport Command of the Nigerian Customs Service on Tuesday arrested an intending passenger with $540,000 at the Lagos Airport.

The passenger, Mr. Apampa Adeshina, who was to board an Emirates Airlines plane to Dubai, was arrested for failing to declare the actual amount with him, a statement by the Public Relations Officer of the command, Mrs. Thelma Williams, said

The Customs spokesperson said the passenger also failed to disclose to relevant government agencies of the source of the money he was travelling with.

According to her, Adeshina was accosted at the currency declaration desk of the agency at the airport.

Last month, operatives of Customs at MMIA arrested a passenger, who was on his way to Kenya, with $1.1m.

The statement quoted the Customs Area Comptroller, MMIA, Mr. Charles Edike, as identifying the passenger as Professor Ofoegbu Ononuju.

Ononuju claimed to be the director of an oil firm. The professor with passport registration number A04008969 claimed that he was travelling with such a huge amount of money to solve a dispute with a Kenya community over oil blocks.

The statement quoted the CAC as saying, "the passenger declared the currency both on forms CDF1A and CDF1B, but claimed he was travelling with Kenya Airways flight number QR542 to Kenya, to solve dispute with Kenya community over oil blocks"

The comptroller noted that the passenger and the currency had been handed over to officials of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission for further investigation.

In 2012, the command intercepted over $12.1m from 14 persons, who tried to smuggle money out of the country, according to the statement.

In November, it arrested a passenger on his way to Qatar with over $320,000. The passenger, identified as Onwuekwe Chidi, could not explain the source of the currency as well as show adequate proof of his business to Customs officials.

According to the statement, the passenger and the money had been handed over to officials of EFCC for further investigations.