- Last Updated on 02 June 2015
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Six senior officials of the Nigerian Central Bank have been arrested over an alleged $33m currency fraud.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) also arrested 16 private bank workers for the fraud which was described as a mega scam.
Explaining what happened on its website, EFCC said the bankers stole tonnes of defaced naira notes which were packed ready for destruction.
EFCC was called in when the zenith bank discovered some irregularities during an internal audit.
According to the anti-graft agency, the suspects filled boxes supposed to contain damaged currency with bits of newspaper cut into the shape of naira notes, before sending them to branches of the Central Bank of Nigeria for destruction.
The actual banknotes were held back so that they could be reused by the suspects, EFCC said.
The anti-graft agency said it suspects that the scam of incinerating newspaper instead of old notes has been going on for years and has been on such a scale it has put inflationary pressure on the economy.
The suspects are to make their first appearances at the federal court in the city of Ibadan on Tuesday.
Watchers of the anti-graft agency have said that by arresting the senior officials at this period, when the leadership of the country has just changed, is a mere play to the gallery. They allege that the leadership of the agency has indeed been treating issues involving high-ranking officers with kid’s gloves ever since.
