Customs Impounds 440 Pump Action Rifles At Lagos Port

The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has impounded 440 pieces of pump action rifles at Tin Can Island port, Lagos. The rifles said to originate from Turkey were intercepted on Monday, it said.

The pump action rifles of various designs were concealed in a 20ft container laden with bags of white cement otherwise called Plaster of Paris (POP). Monday Abueh, Assistant Comptroller-General of Customs (ACG), who represented the Comptroller General of Customs, Hameed Ali, told journalists during briefing that the officers of the service were able to intercept the rifles due to intelligence report made available to the Controller of the Command, Yusuf Bashar. According to him, the pump action rifles were manufactured in USA and Italy but imported from Turkey.

Abueh, who stated that a suspect has been arrested in connection with the importation, added that for security reasons the service was not ready to reveal the identity of the suspect and that of the importer pending the conclusion of investigation. “They are pump action rifles of various designs, some are black in colour, and some are in metallic colour. “Based on intelligence report the container was identified and intercepted. “We discovered that they used POP to conceal the importation and so there was no way that you could know, but based on intelligence report, we were able to know that the container was laden with arms. “We have one suspect in our custody, but due to security reason, we don’t want to make it public for now even the consignee we are still keeping them under wrap because such information could hamper investigations which are still ongoing,” he said.

According to the ACG, the nation has been saved from another round of problem that the pump actions would have caused. Recall that Customs intercepted 661 pieces of pump action rifles imported recently and intercepted by operatives of the Federal Operation Unit, Zone A of NCS.

“Sequel to the renewed vigour and enthusiasm for effective service delivery by the Nigeria Customs Service, the Tin Can Island Command intercepted a total of 440 pieces of assorted pump action rifles,” Uche Ejesieme, the command’s Public Relations Officer, said. 

Also speaking with journalists on the breakthrough at the enforcement section of the command, Bashar Yusuf, Customs Area Controller of the command, stated that the seizure was effected through intelligence which necessitated the segregation of the 1 x 20ft container to the enforcement unit for physical examination. ACG Abue further commended the controller for the spectacular seizure and described the Area Controller as a quintessential officer who had been contributing immensely to the success story of the service. 

The Area Controller gave the breakdown of the seizures as 100 pieces black tornado single barrel rifles, 75 pieces silver magnum single barrel rifles, 50 pieces of alter pump action rifles, 215 pieces of black single barrel rifles and 164 pieces of rifle nozzle. Others are 103 pieces of arms grips, 110 pieces of trigger, 113 pieces of arm guard, 107 pieces of bridge block, 122 pieces of Allen keys, 117 pieces of assemble butt and 516 5okg bags of POP cement. 

Answering questions from the media on the circumstance surrounding the seizure, the Customs Area Controller hinted that the importer declared the consignment as antisera and cannule (chemical formula).

Source: Independent