By Oluwatoyin Adegoke
The Nigeria Customs Service, Ogun 1 Area Command, has recorded a second violent attack on its officers within one week during an ongoing anti-smuggling operation in Ogun State.
The Command’s Public Relations Officer, Mr Zakari Chado said the latest incident occurred along a bush path at Alapoti in Ado-Odo/Ota Local Government Area, where Customs officers on routine patrol intercepted motorcycles conveying smuggled foreign parboiled rice.
Mr Chado explained that forty-six bags of 50-kilogramme of foreign parboiled rice were seized and loaded into a patrol vehicle, after which the officers were ambushed by a large mob armed with dane guns, stones, bottles and charms while withdrawing from the area in an attempt to recover the seized items.
The command’s spokesperson stated that the officers successfully repelled the attack after about thirty minutes of confrontation, during which one of the assailants sustained injuries and later died, while a suspect who claimed ownership of the seized rice was arrested and currently under investigation.
The command noted that the repeated attacks on its personnel were linked to intensified anti-smuggling operations, which have resulted in major seizures of prohibited items including arms, ammunition and narcotics across the area.
Reacting to the incident, the Acting Customs Area Controller, Ogun 1 Area Command, Mr Olukayode Afeni, condemned the attack and assured that the service would not be deterred, warning that all those involved would be identified and prosecuted.
