A statement on Tuesday by the Command's spokesman DSP Daniel Ndukwe said the suspect was arrested by operatives serving in Abakaliki (AI) Road Police Division of the command with the support of law-abiding citizens, around 3 pm on April 10, 2024, at the Old IMT Bus Stop, Abakaliki Road, Enugu.
The Enugu Command of the Nigeria Police Force says it has arrested 24-year-old Mmaduabuchi Okonkwo for having and spending counterfeit Naira notes.
A statement on Tuesday by the Command's spokesman DSP Daniel Ndukwe said the suspect was arrested by operatives serving in Abakaliki (AI) Road Police Division of the command with the support of law-abiding citizens, around 3 pm on April 10, 2024, at the Old IMT Bus Stop, Abakaliki Road, Enugu.
According to Ndukwe, Okonkwo, who hails from Mkpologu, Emene, Enugu, was arrested with ₦40,000.00 suspected to be fake notes.
The statement partly read: "The suspect's arrest is a sequel to his alleged possession and transacting in counterfeited Naira notes. A total of forty thousand Naira (₦40,000.00) suspected counterfeited one thousand denominated Naira notes were recovered from him.
"A preliminary investigation reveals that the suspect boarded a minibus from New Haven Junction to Old IMT Bus Stop, Enugu, and gave the driver one of the counterfeited notes. The driver, however, scrutinized and observed that the currency was fake, thereby raising an alarm that led to the suspect's arrest.
"Upon interrogation, the suspect confessed to having paid the sum of twenty-five thousand (₦25,000.00) genuine Naira notes to his cohort at large for the counterfeited Naira notes worth fifty thousand Naira (₦50,000.00).
"He further confessed to having spent ten thousand Naira (₦10,000.00) out of the fake notes, remaining the forty thousand Naira (₦40,000.00) that was recovered from him.
"The suspect will be arraigned and prosecuted once investigations are concluded."
The PPRO said that the Command's police commissioner, Kanayo Uzuegbu, described the suspect's action as a premeditated act of economic sabotage, aimed at inflicting social, psychological, and economic pains on fellow citizens.
"Hence, he enjoins the citizenry to remain law-abiding and exercise caution while transacting with anyone they suspect to be in possession of counterfeited currencies," he said.