The cleaner, Miss Josephine Agwu, who is said to be on a monthly salary of N7,800, returned the sum, which was probably left behind by a passenger at the security unit of the airport.
According to National Mirror the incident happened on January 23, 2015, while Agwu was cleaning a toilet near the screening point of the departure area of the airport.
Speaking with some journalists at the terminal, Agwu explained that she saw a small handbag left behind by a passenger and acted on instruction that any bag left unattended to in the airport terminal must be picked and deposited with aviation security department of the airport.
She said after asking other passengers if the bag belonged to anyone of them and they all responded negatively, she picked up the bag and took it to the security where it was opened and found that it contained $27,000 and other currencies, including naira, which added up to N12m.
She, however, told journalists that a passenger on Emirates Airlines, who was later simply identified as Samuel from Anambra State claimed ownership of the bag and its contents from the aviation security after much screening.
She added: “If I had taken what doesn’t belong to me, God will punish me. I am content with my N7,800 monthly salary. It was not my money. I believe when it pleases God, He will bless the work of my hands and will make me rich.
“This is not the first time I am doing this. This is the third time in this airport. The first was in the departure area. It belonged to a Nigerian. The second was at the screening point; it belonged to a white man. Of all, only the white man rewarded me with $50, which I rejected until my colleagues prevailed on me to collect it.”
Agwu holds an Ordinary National Diploma, OND, in accounting.
She also said she had worked with many airlines as casual worker in Enugu with a track record of honesty without anyone of them offering her full employment before she moved to Lagos to seek greener pastures, but instead again, got a job in the airport as a cleaner.
The Airport Manager, MMIA, Lagos, Mr. Nathaniel Auta, confirmed the report when asked by our correspondent.
He said: “It was true that a cleaner with one of the concessionaires discovered such a huge amount of money and returned it to security. It is a very good testimony for us all.”
Also confirming the development, Chief Security Officer, CSO, of the Lagos International Airport, Colonel Carl Onalo (rtd), said the lady in question must be appreciated for her honesty to encourage others.
He said management of the airport and possibly that of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, FAAN, would do everything possible to celebrate her honesty at the airport.
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