Two Ladies Arrested With Fake $2,000 At Hajj Camp,Lagos

Posted by Lateef Lawal

Two ladies have been arrested at the Hajj Camp of Murtala Mohammed International Airport Ikeja while attempting to dupe a Bureau de Change operator by presenting fake $2,000 for exchange to N310,000.
On discovering the antics of the ladies, the operator of the Bureau de Change(name withheld), unknown to the suspects promptly informed other dealers to ensure that they did not escape after which they were handed over to the Police.
Reacting to the arrest of the ladies, the Chairman of Hajj Camp Forex Exchange Market, Arewa Complex, Alhaji  Abubakar Usman said the trend has become a source of worry to them.
According to Alhaji Usman, the two ladies in their late 20s were apprehended while trying to exchange fake dollars for naira.
Alhaji Usman revealed that members of the association have lost millions of naira to fraudsters as a result of fake foreign currencies and warned that anyone caught will be handed over to the law enforcement agents for prosecution.
He said the ugly trend has reduced trust of their customers in them, adding that in every month about 12 suspects were apprehended for similar offences.
Alhaji Usman recalled with how some of their members were killed by fraudsters after inviting them to hotels to exchange money and vowed that none of their members would be lured again to any transaction in hotels, eateries and other public places.
He lamented that some military personnel were in the habit of defending some of these fraudsters when they were arrested and that it took the intervention of operation MESA  to get one of the suspects arrested and taken to the police station.
He said henceforth any officer caught encouraging the release of suspect will be reported to the appropriate authorities for discipline.
Alhaji Usman warned that the incident of fake foreign currencies has dented the image of the country as it also affected foreigners.
When contacted, the Divisional Police Officer in charge of the Hajj camp police station was not readily available for comment but a senior police officer confirmed the arrest of the two suspects.