Customs intercepts 1,245 ammunition conceal in 203 bags of rice in Ogun

By Demilade Michael

Operatives of Ogun Area 1 Command of Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) over the weekend , intercepted 20 sacks of ammunition enroute Ogun border.

The sacks, which contained a total of 1, 245 rounds of live cartridges was intercepted on Friday along with 203 bags of foreign parboiled rice, of 50kg each seized at the Ijoun axis of Yewa North Local Government Area of Ogun State.

Addressing newsmen in Abeokuta, Ogun State capital, the Controller Area 1 Command of the Nigeria Customs Service, Bamidele Makinde said the contrabands were intercepted at around 0024-hours of Friday 12th August, 2023 by the Roving "B" Team of the Service which was on a routine patrol of the border.

Makinde hinted that the smugglers resorted to abandoning the contrabands at a bush path of Tobolo junction, an exit point between Nigeria and Republic of Benin, after a hot chase by the anti-smuggling operatives of the command. 

He explained that his command had through a credible intelligence, got wind of a planned movement of some prohibited items into the country from the Republic of Benin by "some unscrupulous elements", hence, his command deployed necessary arsenal to counter their plans.

"During examination of the seized vehicles and the items, about 1, 245 rounds of 70mm (2¾) ammunition of Lion, Trust, Supreme and Redstar branded cartridges were found to have been ingeniously concealed in 20 bags of the seizure". 

He said, "considering the potential danger of ammunition of such magnitude if successfully smuggled in, we redoubled our efforts to ensure that they do not find their ways into Nigeria".

While emphasizing that such contrabands constitute serious threats to safety of the border communities and the national security, Makinde reiterated the commitment of the Command under his watch towards ensuring maximum security of Nigeria's border line "with all sense of patriotism".

He disclosed that the contrabands were loaded in five old vehicles of Toyota Camry brands.

He said the Duty Paid Value (DPV) of the seized ammunition and rice is N17,638,145.00, stressing that investigation was still ongoing towards unraveling the cartel behind the crime.