Justice Uche Agomoh of the Federal High Court in Ibadan, Oyo State, has found social media influencers Bukola Rufai and Abdulateef Jimoh guilty of mishandling naira notes.
Dele Oyewale, who serves as the Head of Media and Publicity for the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, shared the information through a statement released on Wednesday in Ibadan, the capital of Oyo State.
The statement read, “The convicts were prosecuted on a joint one-count charge that bordered on currency mutilation by the Ibadan Zonal Directorate of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.”
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The charge read, “That you, Bukola Rufai and Abdulateef Jimoh, on or about the 25th day of September, 2024 within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, did match on naira notes, issued by the Central Bank of Nigeria and thereby committed an offence, contrary to Section 21 (3) of the Central Bank Act 2007 and punishable under Section 21 (1) of the same Act.”
Upon hearing the charge, they entered a guilty plea. The prosecution counsel, Lanre Suleiman, then presented the case facts, submitted evidence against them, and urged the court to convict and sentence the defendants. In response, defence counsel O.D. Ajadi pleaded for leniency, noting that both individuals were first-time offenders who had shown genuine remorse.
Justice Agomoh convicted the two offenders but did not hand down a custodial sentence, instead giving each of them the option to pay a fine of ₦50,000.
The statement further revealed that the convicts brought attention to themselves by recording a video in which they were seen spraying and stepping on naira notes, which they later uploaded to TikTok, ultimately leading to their arrest and prosecution.
