Justice F. O. Giwa-Ogunbanjo of the Federal High Court, Independence Layout, Enugu, has sentenced a 24-year-old man, Iziga Jude Ikechukwu, also known as “Easy-money,” to one year imprisonment for abusing the naira during his birthday celebration.
Ikechukwu was prosecuted by the Enugu Zonal Directorate of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on a one-count charge bordering on mutilation of naira notes amounting to N81,700.
The charge stated: “That you, Iziga Jude Ikechukwu on 22nd February 2026, at Embassy Hotel Enugu Ezike, Enugu State, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, while celebrating your birthday, you danced and matched on the sum of Eighty-one thousand, Seven hundred Naira (N81,700.00) notes issued by the Central Bank of Nigeria. You thereby committed an offence to wit: mutilation, contrary to and punishable under Section 21 (1) of the Central Bank of Nigeria Act, 2007.”
The defendant pleaded guilty to the charge.
Following his plea, Justice Giwa-Ogunbanjo convicted and sentenced him to one year imprisonment effective from the date of arraignment, with an option of a N300,000 fine. The court also ordered that the N81,700 recovered from him be forfeited to the Federal Government through the EFCC.
The EFCC said Ikechukwu was arrested on February 28, 2026, at his residence near the Timber Market in Enugu-Ezike after a viral video surfaced showing him spraying, stepping on, and mishandling naira notes during his birthday celebration in a hotel room.
The conviction underscores ongoing efforts by authorities to clamp down on naira abuse, which is prohibited under the Central Bank of Nigeria Act.
