Supreme Court Upholds $40,000 Forfeiture Against Former Jigawa Governor’s Son
The Supreme Court has dismissed an appeal filed by Aminu Sule Lamido, son of former Jigawa State Governor Sule Lamido, challenging the forfeiture of $40,000 to the Federal Government over undeclared foreign currency.
A five-member panel of the apex court, led by Justice Inyang Okoro, delivered the judgment on Friday, ruling that the appeal lacked merit and affirming the decisions of the lower courts in their entirety.
In a unanimous judgment delivered by Justice Adamu Jauro and read by Justice Abubakar Sadiq Umar, the court declared that the appeal was “doomed to fail” and formally upheld the forfeiture of the funds to the Federal Government.
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The case has its roots in events that occurred on December 11, 2012, when Aminu Lamido was arrested at Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport in Kano as he prepared to board a flight to Cairo, Egypt. During clearance procedures, he declared $10,000 to the Nigeria Customs Service, as required under Nigerian law. However, upon further inspection, authorities discovered he was in possession of $50,000 in cash, meaning he had failed to declare $40,000.
The discrepancy constituted a violation of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act and related currency declaration laws, which require travellers to declare any amount exceeding $10,000 when entering or leaving Nigeria. The legislation, originally enacted in 2004 and amended several times, is part of Nigeria’s broader framework to combat money laundering, terrorism financing, and illicit financial flows.
Following his arrest, Aminu Lamido was arraigned on February 4, 2013, before the Federal High Court in Kano on a one-count charge of false declaration of foreign currency. The charge was brought under the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act and related statutes governing the movement of cash across Nigerian borders.
After hearing evidence and arguments from both the prosecution and defence, the trial court, on July 12, 2015, convicted Aminu Lamido and ordered that 25 per cent of the undeclared cash be forfeited to the Federal Government. The forfeiture amounted to $10,000, representing a quarter of the $40,000 that was not declared.
Dissatisfied with the judgment, Aminu Lamido approached the Court of Appeal in Kaduna, seeking to overturn the conviction and forfeiture order. However, on December 7, 2015, the appellate court upheld the decision of the trial court, affirming both the conviction and the forfeiture.
Still determined to challenge the ruling, Aminu Lamido escalated the matter to the Supreme Court, Nigeria’s final court of appeal, seeking to nullify the decisions of both the Federal High Court and the Court of Appeal. At the last hearing before the apex court, counsel for both the appellant and the respondent adopted their written briefs, after which the court reserved judgment for a future date.
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In Friday’s ruling, the Supreme Court held that the appeal lacked merit on all grounds raised by the appellant. The court affirmed that both the Federal High Court and the Court of Appeal had properly evaluated the evidence presented before them and delivered judgments that were consistent with the provisions of the law.
The apex court’s decision effectively brings the legal battle to a close, leaving intact the forfeiture order and the conviction. The ruling underscores the judiciary’s commitment to upholding laws designed to regulate the movement of foreign currency and prevent illicit financial activities.
Currency declaration laws have been a critical component of Nigeria’s anti-money laundering framework, particularly in the context of efforts by successive administrations to strengthen financial transparency and combat corruption. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and the Nigeria Customs Service have been at the forefront of enforcing these regulations at Nigeria’s borders and airports.
The Lamido family has been a prominent political dynasty in Jigawa State and the broader North-West region. Sule Lamido, Aminu’s father, served as Governor of Jigawa State from 2007 to 2015 and was also a former Minister of Foreign Affairs under the administration of President Olusegun Obasanjo. The elder Lamido has faced separate legal challenges in recent years, including corruption charges brought by the EFCC, though he has consistently denied any wrongdoing.