By Nkechi Eze
The Supreme Court has affirmed the forfeiture of $40,000 to the Federal Government by Aminu Sule Lamido, son of former Jigawa State Governor, Sule Lamido, over the false declaration of foreign currency at the Aminu Kano International Airport.
The apex court delivered the judgment on Friday, January 16, 2026, upholding the decisions of the Federal High Court, Kano, and the Court of Appeal, Kaduna Division, which had earlier convicted Lamido and ordered the forfeiture of the undeclared funds.
Lamido was arrested by operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission on December 11, 2012, while en route to Cairo, Egypt. He was found to be in possession of $50,000 but falsely declared the sum of $10,000 to officers of the Nigeria Customs Service, in violation of Nigeria’s foreign exchange and anti-money laundering laws.
He was subsequently arraigned on February 4, 2013, before Justice Fatun O. Riman of the Federal High Court, Kano, on a one-count charge bordering on money laundering and false declaration of foreign exchange. Although he pleaded not guilty, the court found him guilty as charged and, on July 12, 2013, ordered the forfeiture of the undeclared $40,000 to the Federal Government.
In an official statement signed by the Commission’s spokesperson, Dele Oyewale, the EFCC disclosed that the charge was anchored on Lamido’s failure to truthfully declare the full sum of foreign currency in his possession, contrary to the provisions of the Foreign Exchange (Monitoring and Miscellaneous Provisions) Act and the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act.
Dissatisfied with the conviction, Lamido appealed to the Court of Appeal, Kaduna Division, on January 5, 2016. However, in a judgment delivered by Justice Habeeb Adewale O. Abiru, with Justices Isaiah Olufemi Akeju and Oludotun O. Adefope-Okojie concurring, the appellate court dismissed the appeal and upheld both the conviction and the forfeiture order made by the Federal High Court.
Lamido thereafter approached the Supreme Court in suit number SC201/2016. In its final judgment, the apex court resolved all the issues raised on appeal in favour of the EFCC, affirming the concurrent findings of the two lower courts and bringing the protracted legal battle to a definitive close.
The Supreme Court’s decision not only sustained the forfeiture of the undeclared funds but also reinforced the legal obligation on air travellers to comply strictly with currency declaration requirements. The judgment is widely regarded as a significant judicial precedent in support of the EFCC’s enforcement of laws against false declaration of funds at Nigerian airports.
