A Federal High Court sitting in Ikoyi, Lagos, has sentenced a man, Okoli Frank Emeka, to six months imprisonment for tampering with and trampling on Nigerian currency during a social function.

The conviction followed Emeka’s guilty plea to a one-count charge of Naira mutilation brought against him by the Lagos Zonal Directorate 1 of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC. The sentence was handed down on Friday, May 23, 2025.

According to a statement issued by the EFCC spokesperson, Dele Oyewale, the charge stemmed from an incident that occurred on August 18, 2024, at Al-moruf Garden in the Isheri Olofin area of Alimosho Local Government Area, Lagos.

The charge read: “That you, Okoli Frank Emeka, on the 18th day of August, 2024, at Al-moruf Garden, Isheri Olofin, Alimosho Local area of Lagos, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, whilst matching on the Naira notes during a social occasion, tampered with the sum of N2,000,000.00 (Two Million Naira) issued by the Central Bank of Nigeria, by matching on the same at the said occasion and you thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 21(1) of the Central Bank Act, 2007.”

Following Emeka’s plea, prosecution counsel Z.B. Atiku presented the case through EFCC investigative officer Sa’id Sada Sani, who detailed the agency’s probe.

Sani told the court that the EFCC launched an intelligence-led investigation after a viral video showed the defendant defacing currency notes.

“A surveillance was carried out, leading to the arrest of the defendant on May 15, 2025,” Sani stated.

“He was shown a video of him spraying the money and he made a statement regarding it.”
Video evidence and a written statement by the defendant were admitted as exhibits by the court.

Atiku urged the court to convict and sentence the defendant based on the evidence presented.

Justice Chukwujekwu Aneke convicted Emeka and sentenced him to six months in prison, with an option of a N250,000 fine.