The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has presented its first witness in the trial of Austrian national Kavlak Onal over alleged undeclared foreign currency at Lagos airport.
EFCC spokesman Dele Oyewale disclosed this in a statement.
He said a Nigeria Customs Service officer, Yusuf Suleiman, testified before Justice Yelim Bogoro of the Federal High Court, Ikoyi.
The defendant was arrested at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport while attempting to travel to Dubai with $800,575 and €651,505 allegedly undeclared.
The EFCC said he was later arraigned on two counts of money laundering and pleaded not guilty.
The witness told the court the defendant claimed he had no funds to declare but large sums of dollars and euros were discovered in his luggage.
He said announcements and signage at the airport require passengers carrying more than $10,000 to declare.
The defence objected to the admissibility of the defendant’s statement, prompting the prosecution to withdraw it.
The court adjourned the case to February 27, 2026.