Nigerian private jets used for money laundering and other illicit activities – Keyamo

Festus Keyamo, Nigeria’s Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, has expressed worries about the mishandling of certain private aircraft, exposing their participation in illicit operations such as drug trafficking and money laundering.

Keyamo announced the creation of a Ministerial Taskforce Committee on Thursday at the Ministry of Aviation in Abuja. The committee’s goal is to reduce the number of illegal charter operations in the country’s aviation sector.

The minister emphasized that these illegal operations have presented serious security risks in addition to costing the sector billions of dollars.

Keyamo pointed out that certain individuals involved in these illegal practices had obtained permits for operating non-commercial aircraft but had subsequently violated the terms of their licenses.

Addressing the committee members, the minister directed them to compile a comprehensive list of all non-commercial flight operators, investigate the validity of their professional licenses, and recommend appropriate sanctions for any airlines found to be involved in illicit activities.

The eight-member taskforce, chaired by Ado Sanusi, CEO of Aero Contractors, has been given a three-month deadline to present its findings to the minister.