Naira abuse: Court grants Cubana Chief Priest N10m bail
The Federal High Court in Lagos State granted businessman and socialite Pascal Okechukwu, also known as Cubana Chief Priest, N10 million bail with two sureties in like sum on Wednesday.
Initially, the celebrity barman pleaded not guilty during his trial for allegedly tampering with and abusing the naira.
Cubana Chief Priest appeared before Justice Kehinde Ogundare facing three counts related to the abuse of the nation’s currency, specifically by spraying and tampering with the naira during a social event, which is contrary to the provisions of the Central Bank Act of 2007.
The charges stated that on February 13, 2024, at Eko Hotel, Cubana Chief Priest sprayed the naira and tampered with funds in N500 denomination notes issued by the CBN during a social gathering where he was dancing.
In Count 3, it was specified that in January 2024, during another social event in Lagos, Cubana Chief Priest tampered with funds in N500 denomination notes issued by the CBN by spraying them, thus committing an offence under Section 21(1) of the Central Bank Act 2007.
The EFCC had recently secured the conviction of another personality, Bobrisky, on similar charges and sentenced him to six months in prison on April 12, 2024.
The EFCC's spokesperson, Dele Oyewale, revealed that the commission was investigating several celebrities for alleged abuse of Naira notes and urged the public to be cautious of violating laws against such crimes.
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