By Adedapo Adesanya
The International Police Organisation (Interpol) says hundreds of thousands of Dollars are laundered out of Nigeria every hour, raising worries about the effect of the development.
This disclosure was made in Abuja on Monday by the Interpol Vice President for Africa, Mr Garba Umar, while declaring open a four-day training workshop for Nigerian law enforcement agencies at the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) Academy, Abuja.
According to Mr Umar, money laundering across Africa and the entire world has assumed a monstrous dimension and Interpol has designed Silver Notices to combat the menace.
“Evidence has shown that every hour, hundreds of thousands of dollars are flowing out of Nigeria to the region and across the world, laundered before it reaches the pockets of criminals to enjoy the profits of their crimes, while the hardworking and honest Nigerians pay the price of crime”
“With every successful laundering of criminal money, our country becomes more prone to crime. More drugs, more fraud, more corruption and more violence. Every time criminal money is successfully laundered, our financial institutions take an additional blow,” he said.
He stressed that hard times awaited money launderers as the Silver Notices would make illicit funds more difficult to launder in any part of the world.
Mr Umar pointed out that financial crimes had become transnational and law enforcement agencies needed regular training for their workforce to be ahead of fraudsters
He urged participants at the workshop to make it a duty to discuss and learn about transnational crimes affecting their regions, identify possible solutions through a review of policing capabilities to support the country, and facilitate direct and in-person interaction amongst law enforcement networks across the country.
“In essence, this Workshop will allow us to re-examine the challenges of fighting transnational crimes in the country, reassess our strategies, and reaffirm our determination and unity as a country to provide security to our citizens and by extension the global community,” he said.
On her part, the Director General and Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU), Mrs Hafsat Bakare, said it was imperative to strengthen capacity and coordination against financial crimes.
“The NFIU, she said, was sensitive to the interconnected nature of the criminal justice system, the threat of organised crime and cybercrimes being fought by law enforcement agencies.
She expressed optimism that the training law enforcement officers would receive at the workshop would sustain efforts being made to ensure that Nigeria exits the Grey List of the Financial Action Task Force possibly by mid-2025.”
The Director of Interpol Financial Crime and Anti-Corruption Centre (IFCACC), Mr Isaac Oginni, said the only way to disrupt organised crimes was by denying fraudsters the financial profit behind their criminal enterprise.
He added that financial intelligence could also be utilised well when investigators recognise its value and use it to build a financial profile around suspects.
