Justice Akintayo Aluko of the Federal High Court in Ikoyi, Lagos, on Thursday, April 17, 2025 convicted and sentenced a businessman, Aniogor Godswill Obiajulu and his firm, ICE BY CW to five years imprisonment for their refusal to accept the Naira as a legal tender
Obiajualu, alongside ICE BY CW, was arraigned on Thursday on a two-count charge bordering on refusal to accept the Naira as a legal tender.
Count one reads: “That you, ICE BY CW and Aniogor Godswill Obiajulu, on the 10th day of December, 2024 in Lagos, within the jurisdiction of this Honorable Court, refused to accept Naira (Nigeria’s legal tender) by accepting the sum of $10,000 (Ten Thousand US Dollars) as a means of payment for the purchase of one diamond Clover bracelet and you thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 20(1) of the Central Bank of Nigeria Act, 2007.”
Count two reads: “That you, ICE BY CW and Aniogor Godswill Obiajulu, on the 10th day of December, 2024 in Lagos, within the jurisdiction of this Honorable Court, directly retained the total sum of $10,000 (Ten Thousand US Dollars), which sum you reasonably ought to have known forms part of the proceeds of your unlawful activity to wit: pricing and accepting USD as a means of payment for goods and services and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 18 (2) (d) of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022 and punishable under Section 18 (3) of the same Act.”
When the charge was read to Obiajulu, he pleaded “guilty” to the offence.
In view of his plea, the prosecuting EFCC lawyer, C.C. Okezie, tendered, in evidence, the payment receipt of the bracelet dated December 10, 2024, Obiajulu’s statement dated December 27, 2024 and the Diamond bracelet.
Okezie also urged the court to convict Obiajulu as charged.
Delivering his judgment, Justice Aluko found the first and second defendants guilty and sentenced them to six months imprisonment each, with an option of fine in the sum of N50,000 on count one.
The Judge sentenced the second defendant to four years imprisonment, with an option of fine in the sum of N1million on count two.
The judge also pronounced a fine of N1million on the first defendant on count two while the Diamond Clover bracelet was ordered forfeited to the Federal Government of Nigeria.
The two convicts bagged their imprisonment for pricing and accepting United States Dollars as a means of payment for goods and services contrary to the Money Laundering Act.
