Gov’s son arrested foralleged money laundering, under-declaring forex

From Desmond Mgboh, Kano Operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) have arrested the eldest son of Jigawa State Governor, Alhaji Aminu Lamido over allegedcase of money laundering. Aminu Sule Lamido, it was gathered, was arrested on Tuesday night on his way to board an Egypt Airline. He is believed to be on his way toCairo, the capital of Egypt. Daily Sun gathered that he was held having been found in possession of $40,000 (N7.5 million), an amount which was said to be in excess of the authorized $10,000 allowed by law for travellers on a trip abroad. Spokesman of the commission, Mr. Wilson Uwujaren, confirmed the report, saying Alhaji Aminu Lamido had been taken into custody. He also confirmed that he was arrested at the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport, Kano trying to travel to Cairo with an amount of foreign money in excess of the approved figure by law. He said upon his interrogation, hepresented them the sum of$10,000, adding that in the course of further interrogation, they found yet another $40,000, which brought the total sum of money found in his possession to$50,000. The spokesman of the commission held that they had since taken the accused person into their custody in Kano office, adding that the commission would announce at an appropriate date, the day he would be arraigned in the court of law. Efforts to reach the spokesman ofthe Jigawa State Government, Alhaji Umar Kyari, or the state Commissioner for Information, Alhaji Ibrahim Babandi Gumel, didnot succeed. …My son wasn’t on money laundering mission – Lamido From ISMAIL OMIPIDAN, Kaduna Governor Sule Lamido of Jigawa State has said contrary to the impression being created by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission ( EFCC), his son, Aminu Sule was not embarking on a money laundering mission on his behalf. Rather, the governor said the sonwas travelling abroad as a follow up to previous medical trips, in respect of the treatment of his grand-daughter, who had a spinal cord problem, insisting thatthe impression being created by the EFCC was “false and mischevious.” In a release, signed by the governor’s Director of Press Affairs, Umar Kyari Jitau, the governor said: “I have read from Sahara Reporters that my son, Aminu Sule Lamido, had been arrested at the Malam Aminu Kano Airport for carrying 50, 000 USD on him while on his way to Egypt. “For the purpose of removing thenotion that he was embarking on money laundering mission on my behalf, that I find it necessary to clarify the allegation. “Aminu Sule has a daughter bornwith a spinal problem and was taken to Cleopatra Hospital in Cairo, Egypt last year. She was in the hospital for three weeks for the treatment and was asked to be returned after three months for the second phase of the treatment and this was done about four months ago. “At the end of the second phase of the treatment, they were askedto return to the hospital for final examination after three months. It is on the third leg of the visit that Aminu Sule was arrested by the EFCC while trying to board Egypt air on Tuesday, December 11, 2012 at about 11.30pm. “The impression the EFCC gave toSahara Reporters that he had been embarking on several trips overseas on money laundering onmy behalf is therefore false and mischievous.”