Popular nightlife promoter and businessman Cubana Chief Priest has expressed anger over the arrest of billionaire and music executive Emeka Okonkwo, also known as E-Money.
E-Money, the founder of 5-Star Music, was arrested by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) at his Lagos home in Omole on the night of Monday, April 25.
According to sources within the EFCC, E-Money was detained for spraying U.S. dollars at a public event, which is said to be a violation of Nigeria’s Foreign Exchange Act.
“On Monday night, we arrested E-Money for naira abuse and defacing foreign currencies. Specifically, he was alleged to have sprayed US dollars, which is against the Foreign Exchange Act. Preliminary investigations are ongoing, and he will be charged to court as soon as investigations are concluded,” an EFCC official, who chose to remain unnamed, explained.
Reacting to the arrest, Cubana Chief Priest took to social media to defend E-Money and question the timing and motive behind the action.
“This is a guy who just did everything to push up Southeast with his just concluded homecoming concert this Easter. I knew they would come for him because they just saw his strength,” he wrote.
“They are doing this so they could break him to make him support them under duress.”
Cubana also suggested that the arrest was part of a wider effort to intimidate voices.
“We don’t die; we multiply. More billionaires are coming. Come 2027, we will support and vote for who we want to. We won’t be broken,” he added.
Both Cubana Chief Priest and E-Money hail from Nigeria’s Southeast, a region that largely supported Labour Party’s Peter Obi in the 2023 presidential elections.