An attempt by a 34 year old man to smuggle 108 ATM debit cards out of Nigeria has been thwarted by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA).
Udeh Onuora Pascal was arrested at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA),Ikeja, in the process of boarding a Qatar Airline flight to China.
The APM cards were issued by five Nigerian banks.
NDLEA officials said yesterday that the suspects might be working for an international criminal organization.
NDLEA commander at the Lagos airport, Mr. Ahmadu Garba said that suspect was arrested in connection with money laundering.
He was handed over to the Assets and Financial Investigation Directorate of the Agency for investigation.
Fifty eight of the ATM cards were issued by First City Monument Bank (FCMB), 23 belong to Stanbic IBC Bank while Zenith Bank has 19, Fidelity Bank 6 and Diamond Bank 2.
Mrs. Victoria Egbase, the Director of Assets and Financial Investigation said that the Agency had established a prima facie case of financial crime against the suspect and that the Chairman had ordered the transfer of the case to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for further investigation.
The suspect in his statement admitted that he is not the owner of the ATM cards and he was only asked to take them to China.
“I am not the owner of the cards. I was told to take them to China and that somebody will collect them from me when I get there.”
He claimed to be a trader at the Onitsha main market and also a 300 level History and International Relations student at the Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka.
He said he “never knew it would lead to my arrest.”
Udeh hails from Obibi in Orlu Local Government Area of Imo State.
Chairman/Chief Executive of the NDLEA Ahmadu Giade said : “This is a suspected money laundering case involving cash transfer with debit cards. The EFCC will carry out further investigation on the case. We must continue to work together as a united force against criminal syndicates.”
