The Kano Zonal Directorate of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has begun investigating a suspect, Adam Musa Adam, arrested with $265,000 at Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport (MAKIA), Kano State. 

The commission, in a statement on Tuesday, said the suspect, who was a passenger with a Nigerian passport arriving from New Delhi aboard Ethiopian Airlines Flight ET941, was intercepted on Sunday, 26 September 2026, during routine screening operations by officers of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS). 

“His luggage was flagged for secondary examination using non-intrusive inspection technology, leading to the discovery of the undeclared currency concealed among his personal belongings,” the EFCC said.

While handing over the suspect and exhibits to the EFCC, the acting customs area controller, Deputy Comptroller of Customs, Usman Umar Adamu, reiterated that the movement of foreign currency above the approved threshold without declaration contravenes Sections 3 and 4 of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act 2022, as well as relevant provisions of the Nigeria Customs Service Act 2023.

Mr Adamu noted that from January to date, the command had intercepted undeclared foreign currency and other negotiable instruments with a total value of over N2.5 billion.

He further stressed that the handover aligned with Section 4(f) of the Nigeria Customs Service Act 2023.

The Kano acting zonal director, Friday Ebelo, who received the suspect and exhibits on behalf of the EFCC, said the handover reflected the collective resolve to clean and sanitise the country’s financial ecosystem. 

Mr Ebelo described the event as an example of meaningful interagency collaboration, from the seamless activities at the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport to the strategic handover.

“The EFCC will conduct and carry out its established mandate by further investigating and prosecuting this case to its logical conclusion. In the life of a people, there comes a time that certain institutions become the beacon of hope by safeguarding our economy against illicit financial flows”, he stated.

Mr Ebola thanked the Comptroller-General of Customs, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, for creating an enabling environment for the collaboration, and hailed Mr Adamu and his officers for their vigilance and commitment to enforcing the laws governing cross-border movement of currency.

“Let me, on behalf of my Boss, Mr Ola Olukoyede, the Executive Chairman of the EFCC, thank the Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Customs Service, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, for the sustained partnership,” he added.