By; RAYMOND TEDUNJAYE, Lagos.
Operatives of the Federal Operations Unit (FOU) Zone “A” of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has busted a syndicate of smugglers of contraband, arresting no fewer than 11 suspects.
Similarly, several items which include 5,459 bags of 50kg bags of foreign rice (equivalent to nine trailer loads) and other contraband goods worth ₦872,575,250 were intercepted by the unit within the month of November.
The acting Controller of the Unit, Deputy Comptroller Hussein Kehinde Ejibunu, who made the disclosure on Tuesday, attributed the successes to the resolve of the unit to continuously work hard to improve detection methods with the aid of intelligence.
He added that this led to interception of a vehicle with an ingenious concealment of foreign parboiled rice.
His words, “The strategic deployment of officers with intelligence-driven in anti-smuggling operations led to the arrest of a Toyota Highlander with an ingenious concealment of suspected bags of foreign parboiled rice at Iju-Ojuore, Ogun State.
“These seizures reflect our commitment to the discharge of our functions; aimed at protecting the nation’s economy and preventing the importation of prohibited and harmful products from entering our domestic markets”.
According to Ejibunu, the unit in November alone, made seizure of no fewer than 5,459 bags of 50kg bags of foreign bags of rice (equivalent to 9 trailer loads) and other contraband goods worth ₦872,575,250 and arrested 11 suspects.
Other seized goods within the month of November, according to him include 18,100 litres of premium motor spirit; 376 bales of used clothes; 1,926 cartons of frozen poultry products; 337 pieces of used compressors; 3 X 40 ft containers found to contain ; 3,838 pieces of used tyres; 13 used vehicles (Tokunbo) and 396 cartons of frozen fish.
On revenue, Ejibunu said, the sum of ₦71,254,984.71 was generated through conscious and thorough documentary checks, followed by the issuance of demand notices on consignments that were found to have paid lesser amounts than the appropriate Customs duty.
“Smuggling operations that employ ingenious concealment methods can have a chance of successfully trafficking illegal goods across borders or checkpoints without being noticed.
“This calls for the collaborative efforts of all citizens to support the Service by providing useful and timely information that would aid the anti-smuggling drive”, he said.
