'Hunted hunter?' Smugglers allegedly abduct customs officer in Ogun

Suspected smugglers have abducted a customs officer in Ogun State and also carted away arms and ammunition.

The armed smugglers also vandalized one of the patrol vehicles before bolting away with the Customs officer identified as CA 1, Taiwo Odeyemi.

The abducted customs officer was said to be the driver of one of the patrol vans used to trail the smugglers.

Confirming the development, Public Relations Officer, Ogun 1 Command, Hammed Bukoye Oloyede, said on Thursday, December 3, 2020, at about 12:10 pm, a team of officers from the Nigeria Customs Service, Ogun I Command while on routine mobile patrol along Olorunlere village, near Alapoti, Ado-Odo Ota Local Government Area of Ogun State intercepted some vehicles loaded with bags of foreign parboiled rice.

The PRO said the suspected smugglers sensing their loss on sighting the patrol team attempted to evade arrest and eventually started shooting sporadically at the officers, adding that it later resulted in serious exchange of fire between the two sides.

Oloyede said consequently, the patrol team called for reinforcement, but before the intervention from other units, the officers were overwhelmed due to the numeric strength of the smugglers/hoodlums.

Oloyede further revealed that the command strongly warned smugglers and their supporters that the incessant attacks leaves officers with no other choice than to use appropriate force to deal with these new wave of criminal attacks on personnel performing their statutory functions.