Customs impound N2.7bn goods, arrest 316 suspects
THE Nigeria Customs Service, Federal
Operations Unit, Zone ‘C’, Owerri says it has recorded a total of 467
seizures of illegally imported items with an overall Duty Paid Value of
N2,709,807,358 in the year 2015.
The Customs Area Controller of the Unit, Mr. Victor Dimka, gave the detail of the seizure while briefing newsmen in Owerri.
Dimka said 316 suspected smugglers of contraband goods were arrested; one was convicted while 23 cases were still in court.
Dimka added that the total sum of N130,144,103.00, being underpayment for goods, were recovered.
He said the seizures included 343
vehicles, 378 bales of bags/suitcases; 6,472 pieces of imported used
tyres; 8,855 cartons of foreign frozen poultry products; and 2,758 bales
of imported textile materials.
Others, he said, were 10 cartons of
foreign beverages/juice; 2,584 bags of 50kg imported rice; 6,747 pairs
of foot wears; 45 cartons of electrical/electronic equipment; 108
cartons of foreign vegetable oil; 1,387 packages of foreign furniture;
and 412 cartons of foreign soaps and detergents.
In addition, Dimka said that 1,561
cartons of fake medicaments; 7,493 bales of second-hand clothing and
5,642 cartons of other contraband items were equally impounded by the
unit during the year under review.
He said there was a geometric growth in result of tackling smuggling within the zone.
“The current seizure report with duty
paid value is 29 per cent and 50 per cent in increase respectively when
compared to seizure report of year 2014 that recorded 363 seizures with
Duty Paid Value of N1, 805,843,064.00.
“This increase also featured in the
current report on duty recovered through demand notice issued as the
increase represented in percentage of 81 per cent is above the sum of
N72, 762,029 recovered on 59 demand notice issued and recorded in year
2014,” he said.
The CAC, who denounced the upsurge of
smuggling activities in the country despite stiff penalties for culprits
arrested, warned those in the illicit business to desist.
He said the NCS had been fortified to
deal with the problem of smuggling by some unpatriotic individuals
desperate to make quick money to the detriment of the nation’s economy.
Dimka added that the NCS, under the
leadership of the Comptroller-General of Customs, Col. Hameed Ibrahim
Ali (retd.), would continue to apply decency and professionalism in the
discharge of its statutory responsibilities, warning that officers found
guilty of official misconduct must be dealt with accordingly.
He called on members of the public with
useful information about smugglers, their agents, sponsors and
collaborators, to contact law enforcement agencies for prompt action,
emphasizing that such vital information would be handled with utmost
confidentiality.
