By Rahim Abdul
A 57-year-old Bulgarian national has been fined K750,000 after being found guilty of attempting to externalise Malawi currency through Kamuzu International Airport in Lilongwe.
The development follows a court ruling by the Mkukula Magistrate Court, which heard how the suspect was intercepted while preparing to leave the country on a Harare/Lusaka-bound flight.
According to court records, the incident happened on April 29, 2026, during routine security checks conducted by airport police officers using X-ray screening machines.
The suspect, identified as Igor Valerievich Bilibin, was stopped after authorities detected suspicious items in his luggage.
Upon conducting a physical search, officers discovered Malawi kwacha notes and coins amounting to MK4,104,000 concealed in his bags.
The court heard that Bilibin admitted to purchasing the money from Standard Bank City Centre Branch using USD 2,000.
He told the court that his intention was to use the Malawi currency for business-related activities in his home country.
However, authorities stated that exporting local currency without proper authorisation is a violation of Malawi’s financial regulations.
Bilibin was subsequently charged with attempting to transfer Malawi currency out of the country without approval, contrary to Regulation 12(1) of the Exchange Control Regulations of 2025.
Appearing before First Grade Magistrate Mervis Sulumba, the accused pleaded guilty to the offence.
The court fined him K750,000, with an alternative sentence of 18 months imprisonment with hard labour if he fails to pay the fine.
In addition, the court ordered that the MK4,104,000 recovered from him be forfeited to the Malawi Government.
