By Moshood Adebayo
The synergy among security agencies in Ogun State, paid off during the week as the Nigeria Customs Service, (NCS) in its anti-smuggling drive uncovered Indian hemp ‘’Cannabis Sativa’’ concealed in spare tyres of a vehicle.
Aside from the hemp, packaged in wraps, the Command, also seized about 650 bags of rice, 10 vehicles, kegs of vegetable oil in the past two weeks.
The Customs Area Comptroller, Sani Madugu, who made the disclosure lamented the increasing incidence of smuggling activities, which he said pose great danger to Nigeria’s economy. “It is pertinent to inform you that the rate, desperation and determination at which smugglers perpetuate their illicit act is mind boggling, as they deploy unhealthy and highly compromised method of concealing edible and other items,” he said.
He said the rice in the vehicle was concealed in virtually all the nooks and crannies of the vehicle including its spare tyre, roof, engine compartment, front and back bumpers.
Madugu, who solicited for plausible information, “so as to assist in mitigating the menace of smuggling in the country”, said the bags of “Indian hemp” will later be handed over to the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, (NDLEA).