By Kingsley Omonobi
Security agencies have invited six individuals and three companies recently designated by the Nigeria Sanctions Committee (NSC) over alleged terrorism financing as investigations into their suspected links to the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) and affiliated terrorist networks intensify.
The development follows the designation of the suspects by the Nigeria Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU), which also directed the freezing of all funds, assets and economic resources linked to them in line with the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022, and relevant United Nations Security Council resolutions.
Speaking at a joint media briefing by security, defence and law enforcement agencies in Abuja on Thursday, an official of the NFIU, Kingsley Amaku, said the designations were based on extensive intelligence gathering, financial investigations and inter-agency assessments.
According to him, the designated individuals are Muktar Muhammad Adamu, Ibrahim Yakubu Ogirima, Adamu Chiroma, Ibrahim Abubakar, Abdullahi Umar Usman and Babangida Muhammed Adamu Hammajam. The affected entities are Abbal Bako & Sons Bureau De Change Limited, Generation Currency BDC Limited and Nine to Nine BDC Limited.
Amaku noted that Muktar Muhammad Adamu was also sanctioned by the United States Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), alongside Generation Currency BDC Limited and Nine to Nine BDC Limited, for their alleged role in supporting terrorist financing.
He said financial institutions and Designated Non-Financial Businesses and Professions (DNFBPs) had been directed to immediately identify and freeze assets linked to the designated persons and entities.
“Their designations by the Nigeria Sanctions Committee followed extensive intelligence gathering, financial investigations and inter-agency assessments which established reasonable grounds to suspect their involvement in financing, facilitating or supporting terrorist activities,” Amaku said.
He added that the coordinated sanctions reflected growing collaboration between Nigeria and international partners in disrupting terrorist financing networks and protecting the integrity of the country’s financial system.
Vanguard gathered that the individuals and companies have been invited by relevant security agencies as part of ongoing investigations to determine the extent of their alleged involvement in financing terrorism.
