Police arrest 2 for selling fake new naira notes

The operatives of the Enugu State Police Command have arrested two suspects for transacting and selling counterfeited redesigned N1,000 notes within a council area in Enugu State.

The suspects were in possession of counterfeited 180 pieces of the redesigned N1,000 notes with a value of N180,000.

This is contained in a statement issued by the Enugu State Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Daniel Ndukwe, on Friday.

Ndukwe stated that the suspects were arrested when police operatives serving in Igbo-Eze South Division of the Command acted on credible information on Thursday, February 2 at about 9:05 p.m.

He said the police operatives arrested Joseph Chinenye, 39, and Onyeka Ezeja, 29, both male, in Enugu-Ezike in Igbo-Eze North Local Government Area of Enugu State.

“Preliminary investigation shows, among other things, that the naira notes, which are in three separate batches, bear the same serial numbers of A/34:282656, A/46:578759, and 8/93:852942.

“The suspects claimed to have secured the counterfeited naira notes from an unidentified woman in Benin, Edo State.

“In addition, they confessed to attempting to sell the naira notes to a POS operator, who rejected them.

“They were, however, arrested by police operatives at a Filling Station in Ibagwa-Aka community of Igbo-Eze South LGA, where they used the naira notes to purchase petrol,” the police spokesperson disclosed.

Ndukwe noted that the duo would be arraigned in court upon the conclusion of an investigation into the case by the State Criminal Investigation Department, Enugu.

He said the Enugu State Commissioner of Police, Ahmed Ammani, has reassured the commitment of the police to fish out and bring to book, criminal elements hell-bent on perpetrating such acts of economic sabotage.

The police spokesman stated that the commissioner also urged the people of the state to support the police in its quest to deal with criminality and criminal elements.

“I want the good people of Enugu State to be vigilant and wary of who or how they obtain and carry out transactions with naira notes, especially the new naira notes,” Ndukwe added.

The Star