NIPOST Intercepts N13.65bn Fake Currencies

Newly elected officers of the National Association of Women Journalists (NAWOJ), Rivers State Chapter, with national officers of the body, during its triennial delegates conference in Port Harcourt recently. Photo: Chris Monyanaga

The Nigerian Postal Service intercepted fake financial instruments worth N13.65bn in the first nine months of the year.
Postmaster General of the Federation, Mallam Ibrahim Baba, said this in Abuja yesterday while briefing newsmen on activities of the NIPOST in a ceremony to mark the 2014 World Post Day.
He also disclosed that the postal organisation handled 24,213,750 mails in the first half of the year, January to June.
Baba said, “As a result of physical inspection of document/postal packets being transmitted through NIPOST, 159 scam letters containing counterfeit financial instruments and other prohibited items were intercepted.”
An analysis of the counterfeit financial instruments intercepted by NIPOST showed that 17 mails worth N149,891,400 were intercepted in January; 66 worth N8,439,690 in February; 18 worth N159,654,963 in March; and 26 worth N118,329,017.36 in May.
Others include 32 mails worth N11,481,408,130.40 in June; four worth N672,632,019 in July; four worth N229,240,200.16 in August; and two worth N757,525,422.16 in the month of September.
According to the NIPOST boss, the major destinations of the counterfeit mails were Britain and the United States.
He explained that the two countries had been extending assistance to the postal organisation to control the transmission of counterfeit mails.