The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has convicted Kano TikToker and Social Media Influencer, Murja Kunya, for alleged Naira abuse and has been sentenced to six months’ jail term with an option of N50,000 fine by the Federal High Court, Kano State.
In a statement made available by the anti-graft agency via its X handle, it noted that the Kano Directorate of the commission on Wednesday, May 28, 2025, arraigned the defendant before Justice Simone Amobeda of Kano High Court after she was arrested for allegedly spraying Naira notes for fun during her stay in a hotel room at Tahir Guest Palace in the state.
“The Kano Directorate of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, on Wednesday, May 28, 2025 secured the conviction and sentence of social media influencer, Murja Kunya, before Justice Simone Amobeda of the Federal High Court sitting in Kano,” the statement reads.
Murja Kunya was initially arrested in January 2025 for violating the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Act, which prohibits the abuse and mutilation of the Naira note. Afterwards, she was granted bail pending her scheduled arraignment for her trial. In a bid to delay the legal process, EFCC noted that Kunya absconded when it was time for her court appearance.
Following weeks of investigations and surveillance by the agency, the influencer was re-arrested on Sunday, March 16, 2025, and made her presence before Justice Simone Amobeda, where she pleaded guilty to the one-count charge.
“You Murja Kunya on the 28th of December, 2023 at Tahir Guest Palace, Kano, within the jurisdiction of this Honorable Court whilst dancing in one of the rooms at Tahir Guest Palace tampered with Naira notes issued by Central Bank of Nigeria by spraying and matching on same in the said occasion and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 21 (1) of the Central Bank of Nigeria Act, 2007,” the charge reads.
While delivering judgment, Justice Amobeda convicted Kunya and sentenced her to six months imprisonment with an option of N50,000 (Fifty Thousand Naira only) fine. In addition, the court also ordered her appointment as an Ambassador of EFCC and CBN in online advocacy campaigns against Naira Abuse due to her substantial followers across various social media platforms.
As part of the rehabilitative process, the Kano High Court also mandates Kunya to utilize her social media reach to educate her followers on the importance of respecting the Nigerian currency and the legal consequences of its abuse or mutilation.
Not the first controversy for Murja Kunya
TikToker Murja Kunya, believed to be between the ages of 27 and 28, was arraigned before the Kano State Hisbah Board, led by its Commander General, Sheikh Aminu Ibrahim Daurawa, in November 2023, after a series of complaints from some residents of Kano and environs that she was adulterating youths.
Hisbah then counselled her against posting videos viewed as promoting immoral acts and influencing younger ones negatively on social media. Murja Kunya kept on posting more videos, thereby gaining more followers and popularity.
Angered by the development, Hisbah again accused her of corrupting and recruiting young girls into prostitution, sharing explicit material, and violating Sharia law norms on social media. Murja Kunya was subsequently arrested, leading to a week-long remand until February 20, 2024, after she was released on court orders, sparking public reactions.
During that period, Kano State Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf came under fire when he publicly criticised Hisbah’s war against immorality known as ‘Operation Kau da badala.’ Some believed that the government engineered her initial release from detention, a claim which was subsequently denied.
Also in September 2022, a Sharia court in Kano wrote to the commissioner of police to arrest and investigate Murja Kuya and other TikTokers over complaints it received from a group of Islamic clerics for what they called “corrupting the morals of the society.” Other TikTokers accused by the clerics were Mr 442, Safara’u, Dan Maraya, Kawu Dan Sarki, Ado Gwanja, Ummi Shakira, and Samha Inuwa.
She was also ordered by a court in Kano to sweep hospital premises during Abdullahi Umar Ganduje’s APC-led administration in 2023, amid an offence of negative use of content on her social media platforms.
