The Federal Operations Unit, Zone ’C’, Owerri, of the Nigeria Customs Service has arrested 13 suspects while also intercepting contraband goods valued N2.8 billion between January 25 and March 25.
According to The PUNCH, this was disclosed by the Acting Comptroller of the NCS in the zone, Mr Kayode Kolade, a Deputy Comptroller of Customs, on Wednesday.
He clarified that the commodities seized were worth N2.7 billion, and the remaining N61.4 million was used to pay demand notices the company issued as a result of various breaches.
Five pangolin scales, 398 sacks of Indian hemp weighing 8,756 kg apiece, and 2,308 compressed packets of Indian hemp weighing 1 kg each were among the things he reported as having been confiscated.
According to NAN, pangolin scales are used to make finger and toe nails.
Additional seizures included 931 jumbo bales of used clothing, 484 bags of smuggled rice, 3, exotic bulletproof automobiles, 2,600 bottles of cough medicine with codeine packed in 26 cartons, and 2,600 bottles of such cough syrup.
31 cartons of various medications, including tramadol, 32 jerry cans of gasoline, and 540 pieces of used tires were also seized.
“After reviewing and re-jigging our operational modalities, the unit intercepted contrabands with a duty paid value of N2.8 billion between January 25 and March 25.
“Remarkably, the five sacks of pangolin scales weighing 413.1kg and the 11,064kg of Indian hemp are the highest, if not arguably the first seizure of such endangered species and hard drugs in the history of the zone.
“Effort towards combating illicit trade in endangered species is to ensure that such animals don’t go into extinction.
“Nigeria, a signatory to the Convention on International Trade of Endangered Species categorises the scales under absolute prohibition making its importation or trade illegal,’’ Kolade said.
He continued by saying that Indian hemp and pangolin scales were seized on the Asaba-Onitsha Expressway and the Benin-Lagos Expressway, respectively.
“The container conveying the 518 bales of used clothes was intercepted on the Benin-Okada Road.
“The second container conveying the 392 jumbo bales of used clothing was intercepted on Umuikaa-Aba Road.
“The consignments were mostly concealed in heavy-duty trucks, and buses.
“The cartons of cough syrup with codeine, and cartons of unregistered medicaments including tramadol were all intercepted on the Asaba-Onitsha Expressway.
“The bags of rice were intercepted on Benin-Okada Expressway, while the used tyres were intercepted on the Ihiala-Onitsha Road and Cross River Waterside, respectively,’’ he said.
Kolade noted that the three exotic armored vehicles were stopped on the Patani-Bayelsa-Port Harcourt Expressway because they lacked end user certificates and customs documentation.
