The Nigerian Customs Service (NCS) has intercepted a significant cache of arms and ammunition valued at N270 million at the Murtala Muhammed Airport in Lagos.
The Comptroller General of Customs, Bashir Adeniyi, disclosed this information through Customs spokesman Abdullahi Maiwada in a statement on Wednesday.
The intercepted consignment, imported from Turkey, was found in the cargo section of the airport, with one suspect currently in custody. In addition to the arms and ammunition, military hardware and accoutrements were also seized by the airport command.
Adeniyi noted, “You may recall that the Customs recently impounded 11 rifles and six pistols, among other items. Similarly, just two days ago, a press briefing of this kind was held in Port Harcourt, where we showcased the seizure of 844 rifles and 112,500 rounds of ammunition.”
He explained that on June 19, Customs personnel were deployed to man all exit points effectively, and all examination officers were mandated to conduct a 100 per cent examination of all consignments.
During one such examination, an item suspected to be part of a rifle was discovered in a consignment with airway bill number 235-58737755, originating from Turkey.
The entire consignment was isolated for thorough examination. Analysis indicated that some unscrupulous Nigerians based in Turkey were purchasing, packaging, and exporting illicit arms to Nigeria.
In addition to the arms and ammunition, other military and paramilitary hardware and accoutrements worth N1.29 billion were also seized by the command. The total Duty Paid Value of all the displayed items amounted to N1.56 billion.
Oreoluwa is an accountant and a brand writer with a flair for journalism.
