Customs at airport seizes NAMA vehicle with stolen cargo …Arrests suspect …Intercepts Military camouflage, drones, walkie-talkie

Customs at airport seizes NAMA vehicle with stolen cargo

.Arrests suspect

.Intercepts Military camouflage, drones, walkie-talkie

By Udeme Clement

The Murtala Mohammed Area Command, MMAC, of Nigeria Customs Service, NCS, has intercepted official vehicle belonging to Nigerian Airspace Management Agency, NAMA, fully loaded with stolen cargoes smuggled from Customs warehouse at the tarmac area of international airport, Lagos.

The Command also seized Military camouflage, walkie-talkie and drones smuggled into the country without end-user certificate from office of the National Security Adviser.

Parading the suspect before Journalists at the airport, the Customs Area Controller (CAC) of the Command, Comptroller Jayne Shoboiki (PhD), said the suspect who is a driver with NAMA sneaked into Customs warehouse at NAHCO shed by 5am in the morning and stole cargoes that have not been declared, and import duty not paid to government.

Displaying the vehicle fully loaded with stolen cargoes, the CAC said it was shocking to discover that a vehicle belonging to government agency could be used to smuggle stolen cargoes from Customs warehouse at the airport.  She explained that the suspect had stolen the items from tarmac and was about driving away when he was arrested based on information.

The CAC, opening the door of the NAMA bus fully loaded with stolen cargoes and all the seats completely removed, said investigation is on-going to unravel the syndicate behind the crime.

The CAC excalmed, “You can see the large quantity of items stolen from our warehouse at tarmac. No declaration has been made on these items and no duty paid to government”.

The suspect by name Mr. Muko Anthony, who has been working with NAMA as a drive since 2012, confessed to the crime, revealing that five men with Sheriff Security, a private security company at the airport, gave him information on how to gain access to Customs warehouse at the tarmac in the early hours of the day.  He said, his informants told him to use NAMA vehicle to avoid suspicion, even as he said that was the third time he stole cargoes from Customs warehouse at the tarmac.

Other prohibited items seized by the Command include 285 sacks of unprocessed Donkey Skin smuggled for export.

Also shocking is the fact that the seizure of unprocessed Donkey skin is coming only two weeks  the same Command handed over 99 sacks of unprocessed Donkey skin to Nigeria Agricultural Quarantine.