Justice A.K Dagat of the Federal High Court in Maiduguri has sentenced Bana Alhaji Lawan to a year in prison for operating a bureau de change without a license issued by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
Naija News reports that the development was announced in a statement posted on the official X account of the Economic And Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
The anti-graft agency disclosed that Lawal was convicted for engaging in authorized currency exchange between 2007 and 2024.
The lone count read: “That you, Bana Alhaji Lawan between 2007 and 2024, in Maiduguri, Borno State within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, did carry on other financial business, to wit bureau de change business without a license issued by Central Bank of Nigeria contrary to Sections 57(5) and 59 of the Bank and other Financial Institutions Act, 2020.”
The activities contravened Sections 57(5) and 59 of the Bank and Other Financial Institutions Act, 2020.
Upon hearing the charge, Lawan pleaded guilty.
The prosecution, led by Faruku Muhammad and A.D Aliyu, requested the court to deliver a decisive sentence to deter similar violations. However, Lawan’s defense, represented by H. Waziri, implored the judge for leniency, stating, “We urge the court to temper justice with mercy.”
Acknowledging the plea, Justice Dagat convicted Lawan but provided an alternative to imprisonment, imposing a fine of N100,000.00 alongside the one-year sentence.
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