The Federal High Court in Lagos has sentenced a bureau de change (BDC) operator, Dabo Ardi, to two months in prison for illegal foreign exchange transactions.
On Tuesday, trial judge F.N. Ogazi convicted Mr Ardi after he admitted guilt to a one-count charge brought by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
The judge also gave him the option to pay a fine of N80,000 instead of serving the prison time.
The EFCC explained in a statement by its Head of Media and Publicity, Dele Oyewale, that Mr Ardi was charged for engaging in illegal forex transactions.
The charge stated that Mr Ardi, at some point in 2026 in Lagos, carried out a foreign exchange transaction outside the official market. This act is against Section 11(1)(a) of the National Economic Intelligence Committee (Establishment, etc.) Act, 1994, and is punishable under Section 11(2) of the same law.
When the charge was read to him, Mr Ardi pleaded guilty without hesitation.
After his plea, the prosecution lawyer, S.I. Suleiman, reviewed the case details and asked the court to convict and sentence him.
Judge Ogazi then found Mr Ardi guilty and sentenced him to two months in prison, with the option of paying N80,000 as a fine.
This conviction is part of several cases against BDC operators prosecuted by the EFCC in Lagos for conducting forex transactions outside the official market.
On July 31, another judge, Akintayo Aluko, sentenced four BDC operators, Umar Muhammad Lamido, Yusuf Musa Yusuf, Abdulmuhimin Mahmud, and Muhammed Musa, to 12 months in prison each for similar offences.
Each of them was also given the option to pay a fine of N100,000 after they pleaded guilty to separate charges filed by the EFCC.
These charges were also based on Section 11(1)(a) of the 1994 Act.
The EFCC had also taken action against another BDC operator, Faruk Umar, for a similar offence in 2025.
Another judge, Chukwujekwu Aneke, sentenced Mr Umar to six months in prison in February 2025, with an option of N50,000 as a fine.
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