Police Operatives serving in Igbo-Eze South Division of Enugu State Command, on Thursday, February 2, have arrested one Joseph Chinenye aged 39 and Onyeka Kenneth Ezeja aged 29, both male and respectively of Iheakpu-Awka in Igbo-Eze South LGA and Onicha Enugu-Ezike in Igbo-Eze North LGA, for allegedly being in possession of suspected counterfeited one hundred and eighty (180) pieces of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN’s) newly redesigned one thousand naira (N1,000) notes, with face value of one hundred and eighty thousand naira (N180,000.00).
The Naira swap introduced by the Federal Government through the Central Bank has continued to bring out different colours from Nigerians.
From students beating soldiers in UniBen, to people fighting at ATM points. From people fighting in banking halls to Ibadan people protesting at Iwo Road.
A statement released by the spokesperson of the state police command, DSP Daniel Ndukwe, says preliminary investigation shows, among other things, that the notes, which are in three separate batches, bear the same serial numbers of A/34:282656, A/46:578759 and 8/93:852942; while the suspects claimed to have secured the counterfeited Naira notes from an unidentified woman in Benin, Edo State.
“They confessed to attempting to sell the notes to a POS operator, who rejected them, before the Operatives arrested them at a Filling Station in Ibagwa-Aka community of Igbo-Eze LGA, where they used the notes to purchase petrol. The duo will be arraigned in court upon consolidation and conclusion of investigation into the case by the State CID Enugu.” Ndukwe said
He added that the state Commissioner of Police, CP Ahmed Ammani, has reassured the commitment of the Police to fish out and bring to book, criminal elements hellbent on perpetrating such acts of economic sabotage. He advised the masses to be vigilant when carrying out transactions with Naira notes, especially the new ones.
