By Suleiman Shehu
The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Oyo/Osun Area Command, has intercepted 45 bags of live cartridges and other contraband goods, apprehending six suspects in the process.
The acting Customs Area Controller, Deputy Comptroller of Customs, Wale Adewole, disclosed this while briefing newsmen on the command’s achievements in January.
Adewole said the command, in the period under review, recorded notable operational successes in line with the service’s mandate of revenue generation, smuggling suppression and protection of the nation’s economy.
He listed other seizures to include 2,234 bags of 50kg rice, 1,112 pieces of used tyres, 562 kegs of 25 litre petrol and 124 bales of used clothes.
Others include 37 wraps of Cannabis sativa, 15 pieces of Codeine syrup, 10 packs of Tramadol, 42 sacks of used shoes and 110 cartons of foreign spaghetti.
He added that 150 pieces of used compressors, 107 cartons of pharmaceuticals and five Tokunbo cars, among others, were also seized.
“Within one month of my assumption as the acting controller, the command made significant seizures with a commutativity Duty Paid Value (DPV) of N2.7billion,” he said.
The acting controller said the seizures were intercepted at various flashpoints across the command’s area of responsibility through credible intelligence, patrol and strategic enforcement operations.
On the achievements of 2025, Adewole said the command surpassed the revenue target of N86.2billion with a revenue surplus of N13.1billion.
This, he said, resulted in a 15.22 per cent increase in the 2025 revenue target.
He said the command remained committed to its zero-tolerance policy against smuggling and other forms of economic disruption.
According to him, the command will continue to collaborate with other sister security agencies and stakeholders to achieve results.
Adewole warned smugglers and unpatriotic elements to desist from all forms of illegal activities, noting that the command would not relent in the discharge of its responsibilities.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the intercepted live cartridges were later handed over to Commander Wey Olabisi.
Olabisi is an Assistant Director at the National Centre for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons (NCCSALW), South-West Zone.
While receiving the items, Olabisi commended customs for their collaboration towards strengthening peace and security in the country.
He said mopping up small weapons and ammunition in the country was beyond what an agency could effectively handle.
The items, he said, would be taken to NCCSALW headquarters in Abuja, where they would be destroyed. (NAN)(www.nannews.ng)
Edited by Moses Solanke
