Court Sentences Man to Prison for Illegal Trading of Naira Notes in Ibadan

Justice Nkeonye Maha of the Oyo State Federal High Court in Ibadan has sentenced Ayorinde Festus Morakinyo to prison for engaging in illegal trading of naira notes. Morakinyo was arraigned by the Ibadan Zonal Directorate of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on March 26, 2025, facing a single charge related to unlawful trading of naira currency.

According to the charge, "Ayorinde Festus Morakinyo, in December 2023 in Ibadan, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, sold N1,000,000 (One Million Naira) in denominations of N1000 (One Thousand Naira) and N500 (Five Hundred Naira) issued by the Central Bank of Nigeria for only N50,000 (Fifty Thousand Naira), thereby committing an offense in violation of Section 21(4) of the Central Bank of Nigeria Act, 2007, punishable under Section 21(1) of the same Act." Upon hearing the charge, Morakinyo pleaded "guilty," which led prosecution counsel Sanusi Galadanchi to call a witness, Adegbite Adebayo, an EFCC officer, who presented incriminating documents and items.

The prosecution urged the court to convict and impose a sentence on Morakinyo as charged. Justice Maha ultimately convicted Morakinyo and sentenced him to six months in prison or a fine of N50,000 (Fifty Thousand Naira). His legal troubles began with his arrest in February 2024 at a nightclub in Ibadan, Oyo State, where he was found engaged in the illegal exchange of naira notes.