The Nigeria Customs Service, Western Marine Command on Tuesday, handed over 17 sacks of Cannabis Sativa, containing 1, 257 parcels worth N96m, intercepted along Bar Beach in Lagos State, to the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency.
Speaking during the handover at the command in Apapa, Lagos, the Customs Area Controller of the command, Paul Bamisaiye, said that the officers of the command, in a bid to purge the Western waterways of smuggling activities, intercepted the hard drugs weighing 609kg.
He stated that a patrol team at the Bar Beach station received credible intelligence on the movement of a boat on the high sea carrying suspected contraband items.
Bamisaiye added that upon receiving the information, the team moved towards the described location and intercepted a fibre boat fitted with a 200Horse Power Yamaha engine, carrying the suspected items.
“In a related development on May 19, 2024, officers and men of the command, while on routine patrol along Panko Creek, Badagry waterways, intercepted a wooden boat fitted with a 25HP Yamaha engine carrying suspected contraband items,” he said.
The WMC boss stated that the smugglers, upon sighting the patrol boats, abandoned their boat and dived into the water.
“A careful examination of the items revealed 505 bags of foreign parboiled rice and the means of conveyance, with a combined duty paid value of N59.2m,” he added.
He stated that the actions of those smugglers directly contravene sections 245 and 254 of the Nigeria Customs Service Act 2023.
He appealed to the general public and traders not to engage in illicit drugs and to shun smuggling, which leads to economic sabotage, as drugs continue to be a menace to society and a source of other criminal acts such as banditry, kidnapping, and armed robbery.
While receiving the substances, the Assistant Commander of Narcotics, NDLEA Marine Command, Maggaji Bashiru, commended the customs command for intercepting the hard drugs, noting that it proved the increased synergy among sister agencies.
He mentioned that while security agencies were planning strategic approaches to enforce arrests, smugglers were also re-strategising.
Bashiru said the items would be taken to the NDLEA command for a thorough investigation.
