The Federal High Court in Lagos State, on Wednesday, granted businessman and socialite, Pascal Okechukwu, popularly known as Cubana Chief Priest, N10m bail with two sureties in like sum after the celebrity bar man pleaded not guilty to tampering and abusing the naira during his trial.
Cubana Chief Priest was arraigned before Justice Kehinde
Ogundare on three counts bordering on abuse of naira by allegedly spraying and
tampering with the nation’s currency at a social event, contrary to the
provisions of the Central Bank Act of 2007.
He was alleged to have sprayed the naira on February 13,
2024, at Eko Hotel.
Cubana Chief Priest was said to have also committed the
offences while dancing during a social event.
He was said to have tampered with funds in the denomination
of N500 notes issued by the CBN by spraying the same for two hours.
In the charge marked FHC/L/ 246/2024, seen by BrandIconImage,
the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission alleged that sometime in 2020,
during a social event in Lagos, Cubana Chief Priest tampered with funds in the
denomination of N500 issued by the Central Bank of Nigeria, by spraying the
same for two hours.
In Count 3, it was alleged: “That you, Okechukwu Pascal,
sometime in January 2024, in Lagos during a social event, tampered with funds
in the denomination of N500 (Five Hundred Naira) issued by the Central Bank of
Nigeria by spraying same and you thereby committed an offence, contrary to and
punishable under Section 21(1) of the Central Bank Act 2007.”
The EFCC, on April 5, 2024, secured the conviction of
popular cross-dresser, Idris Okuneye, also known as Bobrisky, on similar
charges for which he was sentenced to six-month imprisonment on Friday, April
12, 2024.
Earlier on Sunday, the EFCC revealed that it was probing
several celebrities over alleged abuse of Naira notes.
In a statement, its spokesperson, Dele Oyewale, said, “Many
of them have made useful statements to the commission and many more have been
invited by investigators working on the matter.
“The EFCC will not relent in its no-sacred-cow mode of
operations and the public should be wary of running afoul of laws against the
crime.”
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