The sudden surge of fake dollars and cybercrimes in the Benue region has raised concerns for the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
The Acting Chairman, Mr. Abdulkarim Chukkol, expressed these concerns during a workshop on “Effective Reporting of Economic and Financial Crimes” held in Makurdi, where 30 journalists from prominent media organizations in the country participated.
Chukkol, represented by Mr. Friday Ebelo, Head of the Makurdi Zonal Office of EFCC, emphasized that the commission has taken steps to address this situation.
He reiterated the commission’s primary goal of significantly reducing corruption in the country and assured that it would continue to carry out its duties with professionalism and effectiveness.
“Through the commission’s enforcement activities, recoveries running into several billions of naira have been recorded, and the country’s anti-money laundering framework strengthened.
“There is now a more robust regulation of the activities of these entities which are vulnerable to money laundering,” he added.
Chukkol issued a warning against disclosing bank details to anyone to prevent them from being used for illicit financial transactions.
He then, urged the media to educate family members, friends, politicians, and others about the risk of legal consequences if their companies or bank accounts are involved in laundering proceeds from illegal activities.
“Under the Money Laundering Act, 2022 family members and close allies of politicians and public office holders, including top civil servants, are now classified as Politically Exposed Persons.
“The EFCC is determined to ensure that anyone who steals from public treasury and all those who assist them under whatever guise, are brought to justice, and ignorance of the law will not be an excuse,” he said.