Olayomi Koiki
A Nigerian trafficker holding several million euros was reportedly arrested by Benin authorities on Saturday, December 14, 2024 at the Sèmè-Kraké border.
Coming from Nigeria’s Lagos, the suspect was trying to avoid customs control services when he was apprehended, local news outlets in the Francophone country reported, citing sources.
After searching him thoroughly, officers reportedly found about five million euros (more than 3 billion CFA francs).
This is considered an infringement of the legislation in force. It was therefore necessary to declare currencies when the amount exceeds the threshold of 5 million CFA francs.
KOIKI Media confirmed from the website of the Republic of Benin’s Ministry of Economy and Finance that there are conditions for transporting foreign currency by travellers.
The arrested Nigerian man will soon be presented to the special prosecutor of the Court for the Repression of Economic Offenses and Terrorism (CRIET), according to news outlets.
It was not immediately clear how the suspect beat officers of the Nigerian Customs Service despite several checkpoints along the Lagos-Badagry Express way – leading to the Republic of Benin. The Nigerian Customs Service did not respond to KOIKI Media’s request for comments.
In 2005 and 2007, the Nigeria Corruption Index (NCI) listed the Customs Department as the county’s third and fourth most corrupt public organization .
However, the operation carried out by the Customs Territory Surveillance Office of Sèmè-Kraké – demonstrates the commitment of Colonel Marcelin Laourou and his men, for an increasingly dynamic Beninese customs and resolutely committed to fighting against all forms of fraud, local news outlets remarked.
Betraying fatherland
As the Nigerian government grapples with revenue challenges, customs officials rake in billions for themselves while sabotaging the government’s policies they were meant to protect.
While the custom’s complicity in the movement of contraband items across Nigerian borders are well documented – like in a recent investigation by the Foundation for Investigative Journalism – the identification and prosecution of officials involved is a rarity.
Le Béninois Libéré contributed to this report
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