The Nigerian government has revealed the names of six individuals and three Bureau De Change (BDC) companies it accuses of supporting terrorist activities in the country.
The move comes days after the United States named a Lagos-based foreign exchange trader as someone it suspects of supporting terrorism in the country.
Nigeria has long been battling foreign-linked terrorist groups, leading to accusations that some people both within and outside the country support bandits by helping them with money transfers and arms smuggling.
This has pushed the government to focus on identifying people who assist these groups through funding or providing equipment.
It is on this basis that the government released the names of six people suspected of sponsoring terrorism in the country after spending time investigating them.
Nigeria’s Sanctions Committee, chaired by Beatrice Jedy-Agba, released the names after verification through intelligence agencies.
“We released the names after gathering intelligence, investigating financial transactions, and inter-agency information analysis, which confirmed the evidence of the allegations we have against them,” she said.
The people accused include:
1. Mukhtar Muhammad Adamu
A resident of Lagos in southwestern Nigeria, accused of helping ISWAP’s Okene faction by carrying out financial transactions for the group through his exchange company.
He is accused of sending about ₦3 million to an account suspected to belong to an ISWAP member in 2023. On Wednesday, the United States named him as someone supporting terrorism in Nigeria.
2. Ibrahim Yakubu Ogirima
The government accuses him of providing equipment and financial support to ISWAP fighters in Kogi area. He is also accused of acting on ISWAP leadership’s orders by receiving and distributing money to families of dead ISWAP members, which helps the group’s operations continue.
3. Adamu Chiroma
He faces accusations of supporting terrorism by using his foreign exchange companies to send money to people linked to ISWAP.
The government says its investigation accused Chiroma of using exchange companies to transfer money to accounts of people connected to the ISWAP faction in Okene.
4. Ibrahim Abubakar
He is accused of sponsoring terrorism and being a member of ISWAP. The government says its investigation found that Ibrahim was once at an ISWAP camp in the Lake Chad area between 2015 and 2017.
The investigation also found that he helped transfer money to senior ISWAP members and people who excel at funding the group.
5. Abdullahi Umar Usman
He is accused of providing financial support to ISWAP’s Okene faction. The government’s investigation found that he uses his BDC registered in Kano to send money to ISWAP members.
Financial transaction records showed how he sent up to ₦3.5 million to the bank account of Abdulkareem Abdulsamad Ohida, one of the senior members of ISWAP’s Okene faction.
6. Babangida Muhammed Adamu Hammajam
The last person on the list of names recently released by the Nigerian government is accused of involvement in the financial transactions the group uses to operate.
He is also accused of providing money and using it to buy things ISWAP needs, including buying a Starlink internet device to improve the group’s communications and operations.
He is also accused of being linked to Abdulhamid Muazu, a former Boko Haram spokesperson who later defected to ISWAP.
Response from Bureau De Change Operators
The Association of Bureau De Change Operators of Nigeria, ABCON, condemned all acts of terrorism and support for it.
In a statement it released, the association stressed that the sanctions placed by the government on those companies affect only the individuals and companies mentioned, not all members and companies of the association.
ABCON also said it will take steps to prevent the foreign exchange business from being used to support terrorism.
The association said it will use methods such as knowing your customer before sending or exchanging money for someone.
It will also report unauthorized money exchanges, organize awareness training, and cooperate with government agencies.
