Mozambique: Two arrested aboard China-bound plane with US$132,000 in cash

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Mozambique: Two arrested aboard China-bound plane with US$132,000 in cash

1:21 CAT | 22 Sep 2025

Photo: Notícias

Two foreign nationals were arrested at Maputo International Airport with US$132,000 in cash while already on board a flight bound for China, Mozambican authorities announced today. The police suspect the case involves money laundering.

According to João Adriano, spokesperson for the National Criminal Investigation Service (SERNIC) in Maputo, the arrests were the result of a joint operation with the Police of the Republic of Mozambique (PRM) and the airport’s internal security team.

The suspects, citizens of Mali and Ivory Coast, were detained on Friday. The cash was found distributed inside a bag and had not been declared to Mozambican customs authorities.

“These two individuals were apprehended while already aboard a flight to China. The amount was being transported for unclear purposes,” Adriano said at a press conference, stressing that the failure to declare the cash raised suspicions.

“This deliberate omission must be associated with an attempt to conceal the criminal origin of the money,” he explained, noting that the arrests were made to prevent the funds from being used to purchase goods or services that could later generate illicit profits.

He further stated that the intent may have been to place the funds into Mozambique’s financial system through the acquisition of goods abroad — an act considered money laundering.

Adriano added that investigations are ongoing “with due care” to uncover all individuals involved, including possible collaborators within airport operations.

“We need to further investigate how these individuals managed to board the flight with that suitcase and undeclared cash,” he said.

READ: Mozambique: Entry or exit with more than 10 thousand metiicais/ US dollars must be declared – O País

Mozambique has faced ongoing international scrutiny regarding financial oversight. On 22 October 2022, the country was added to the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) grey list of jurisdictions under increased monitoring for failing to address weaknesses in anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing efforts.

On June 16, the government announced that FATF representatives would visit Mozambique from 8 to 11 September, with a decision on the country’s grey list status expected in October.

Mozambique remains optimistic about its removal from the list, following what authorities have described as “substantial progress.” In August, Luís Abel Cezerilo, the national coordinator for Mozambique’s removal from the grey list, reaffirmed that the country had implemented several key reforms.

Source: Lusa