The Nigerian Customs Service has intercepted and seized a total of one hundred and ninety-nine thousand, four hundred and ninety-five litres of Premium Motor Spirit being diverted through various concealment methods and smuggling techniques.
This follows an intense intelligence-driven action under Operation Whirlwind across the Zone ‘D’ Axis covering the Adamawa/Taraba Command.
The Duty Paid Value of these seizures amounts to One Hundred and Ninety-Nine Million, Four Hundred and Ninety-Five Thousand Naira (N199,495,000).
These tactical operations yielded the following seizures of Four Fuel Tankers carrying 97,000 litres, 1,363 Jerry Cans of 25 litres each, totalling 34,075 litres, 11 Drums of 220 litres each, totalling 68,420 litres
At a press briefing in Yola, The Adamawa State Capital, the Comptroller General of the Nigerian Customs, Mr Bashir Adeniyi said Customs vigilant officers, operating in high-risk terrains, intercepted these products through well-coordinated operations targeting sophisticated smuggling attempts.
This includes Night-time river crossing operations at Dasin Waterways, where large-scale maritime smuggling using sophisticated boat networks was disrupted, discovery and dismantling of illegal storage facilities within 500 meters to 1 kilometre of border communities.
Interception of fuel tankers attempting concealment in unauthorized dispensing points serving as smuggling reservoirs and prevention of cross-border movement through unofficial routes, particularly along the Galamba-Song axis, 8km from the Cameroon border.
Also Strategic waterways interdiction, including the seizure of a major shipment containing 311 drums and multiple jerry cans. Adeniyi said
He added that these tactical interventions were executed at identified smuggling corridors and critical waterway points along Nigeria’s international borders with Cameroon.
These repeated attempts by economic saboteurs to divert our strategic national assets clearly demonstrate their determination to inflict hardship on law-abiding Nigerians.
The Comptroller General said the Nigeria Customs Service remains resolute and unshakeable in its mandate to protect Nigeria’s economy.
He emphasized that there will be no safe haven for smugglers in their operational areas so as to justify the confidence reposed in them by the President Bola Tinubu led Administration.
Olusola Akintonde
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