By Peter Omopo
The Supreme Court is expected to deliver its judgment on Friday in the appeal filed by Aminu Sule Lamido, son of former Jigawa State Governor, Sule Lamido, over his conviction for failing to declare $40,000 at an airport.
Aminu is seeking to overturn the decisions of the Federal High Court and the Court of Appeal, both of which found him guilty of false declaration of foreign currency and ordered the forfeiture of part of the undeclared sum to the Federal Government.
The case stems from an incident on December 11, 2012, when operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission arrested Aminu at the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport as he was about to board a flight to Cairo, Egypt.
According to the prosecution, Aminu declared $10,000 on a currency declaration form issued by the Nigeria Customs Service. However, a subsequent search allegedly revealed an additional $40,000 in his possession, which he failed to disclose.
He was subsequently charged before the Federal High Court in Kano on a count of false declaration of foreign currency, an offence under the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act.
In a judgment delivered on July 12, 2015, the trial court convicted Aminu and ordered that 25 per cent of the undeclared amount be forfeited to the Federal Government as a penalty.
Dissatisfied with the ruling, Aminu appealed to the Kaduna Division of the Court of Appeal, urging the court to set aside both the conviction and the forfeiture order. However, in a decision delivered on December 7, 2015, the appellate court dismissed the appeal and upheld the judgment of the trial court.
Aminu subsequently approached the Supreme Court, asking the apex court to quash his conviction and nullify the decisions of the lower courts.
At the final hearing of the appeal, counsel to both parties adopted their written briefs of argument, after which the Supreme Court reserved judgment.
The apex court has now fixed Friday, January 16, 2026, to deliver its verdict, bringing the long-running legal battle closer to a final resolution.
