The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Federal Operations Unit, Zone ‘A’, has disclosed how it intercepted smuggled goods valued at N40,144,250.00, barely two weeks after the Ag. Controller of the Unit Usman Yahaya, a Deputy Comptroller, led his Unit to make massive seizures of goods worth over N10 billion.
It revealed that the achievement was a result of the logistics provided by the NCS management, intelligence gathering, hard work and dedication to duties of officers and men of the Unit.
This feat, made the Comptroller-General of Customs Col. Hameed Ali (Rtd) to pay a working visit to Lagos recently, where he showcased various seizures made by FOU ‘A’.
The Unit, again, intercepted 1,393 bags of smuggled foreign parboiled rice, 187 jerry cans/66 drums of foreign vegetable oil, 625 Cartons of poultry products and 50 jerry cans of foreign vegetable oil.
These according to the Unit were intercepted at various unapproved routes within Ogun State.
The seizures according to the Customs boss were made between 5-17, February 2020, based on surveillance and routine patrol.
“The rice, vegetable oil and poultry products were conveyed in 12 different motor vehicles and also concealed in gas cylinders with a cumulative Duty Paid Value (DPV) of N40,144,250.00.
“This desperate act by these daredevil smugglers, concealing edible items in a gas cylinder further justifies the hard chase by operatives of Customs,” The Acting Controller added.
A breakdown of the DPV of seized items is as follows:
Rice valued at N27,860,000.00, Veg. Oil valued at N6,284,250.00 and frozen Poultry valued at N6,000,000.00.
DC UsmanYahaya warned that unless the economic saboteurs repented from their unscrupulous activities, they would continue to count their losses.
He also advised legitimate traders to be compliant in their declarations as the Unit was ever ready to facilitate their trade in line with world best practices.
While thanking the Comptroller General of Customs Col. Hameed Ibrahim Ali (Rtd), and the entire Management Team of NCS, for providing necessary logistics and motivation that led to this feat, Ag. Comptroller Yahaya called on all meaningful Nigerians to support the Service’s fight against smuggling activities by providing intelligence that could assist the unit to achieve more monumental seizures.
