Fact Check: Viral Video of Men Sharing Cash Was Not Filmed in Nigeria
A video circulating on WhatsApp and Instagram shows men dressed in camouflage, flaunting bundles of cash in bags and trucks. A woman’s voice is heard condemning Nigerian leaders and questioning the actions of “bandits” in the country.
The narrator accuses the Tinubu administration of complicity, asking: “Who are the people sponsoring these bandits?” and “What is going on?”
This video was also posted on YouTube on May 2, 2025, with viewers questioning the origin and whether Nigeria’s security agencies were aware of the incident.
However, an investigation by OkayVerify reveals the video is not from Nigeria.
A reverse image search traced the earliest version of the video to a Facebook post from December 16, 2024. That version included an Arabic voiceover and a caption referencing Al-Dagalo’s militia, known formally as the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in Sudan.
According to the translated caption, the video documents the looting of banks and markets by the RSF. The narrator alleges that the group has a long record of theft and destruction.
The RSF, led by Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, has been in conflict with Sudan’s military over political control. The video’s resurfacing comes amid Sudan’s currency reform, announced in November 2024, which prompted widespread looting and instability.
Importantly, the cash shown in the video is not Nigerian naira, and the speaker is not speaking any Nigerian language.
Sudan’s Central Bank introduced new banknotes as a move to encourage bank use and limit looting by informal militia groups. The RSF opposed the reform, accusing the state of using monetary policy for political suppression.
