Daily Post Nigeria
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The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), has confirmed the clash between some of its officers and some smugglers in Iseyin.
DAILY POST had earlier reported that no fewer than four people were killed in Iseyin, Oyo State during a clash between some Customs officers and smugglers.
Our correspondent gathered that the incident occurred Thursday afternoon when some residents were still celebrating the Eld-Fitri festival.
Sources informed that the four people died as a result of gunshots sustained after customs officers engaged smugglers.
The Customs’s officers allegedly began to shoot sporadically after intercepting smuggled goods coming through the borders.
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Published 14 May 2021
Nigerian Customs Service has explained the reason why its men shot and killed some residents of Iseyin on Thursday.
Residents said five persons were shot dead while some were injured when Customs men opened fire on some vehicles suspected to be loaded with foreign rice on Thursday
But the NCS in a statement on Friday claimed some rice smugglers hired hoodlums to attack its officers on lawful duty and injured some of its officers in the process.
The statement, which was signed by Theophilus Duniya on behalf of Ag. Controller, F O U Zone ‘A’, said one of its injured officers was abducted by the hoodlums with his rifle, and his colleagues in the process of rescuing him fired at the hoodlums, and three of them were killed.
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A patrol team attached to the Federal Operations Unit, Zone A of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) on Thursday repelled an attack from smugglers at Iseyin area of Oyo State, killing three of the smugglers while also evacuating two Nissan Pathfinder SUV fully loaded with foreign parboiled rice.
In a statement made available to newsmen on Friday by the Spokesman of the Unit, DSC Theophilus Duniya, the Customs revealed that the attack on the patrol team took place at about 3 pm on Thursday in Iseyin.
According to the statement, “At about 1500 hours of Thursday, 13th May 2021 some daredevil smugglers mobilized themselves with the help of some thugs; attacked a patrol team serving with Federal Operations Unit Zone A, who was on lawful duty at Iseyin.
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On Thursday,
four persons were said to have been killed during a clash with smugglers who used the town as a connecting route to Ibadan and other cities.
One of the victims was said to be a motorcyclist who was hit by a stray bullet.
Speaking on the incident, Abdulganiy Adekunle, the Aseyin of Iseyin, condemned the action of the customs officers and said the community will take decisive steps to get to the root of the matter.
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“We will no longer allow customs officers to continue wasting the lives of our promising younger ones, our future and hope, and so drastic steps shall be taken to look into both the remote and the immediate causes of the killings,” the traditional ruler said in a statement.
Smuggling: Customs decry communitiesâ dwindling collaboration
By Hussaina Yakubu
Kaduna April 29,2021 The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) Federal Operations Unit Zone âBâ, has decried lack of cooperation of some Nigerians in border communities to efforts of the service to check smuggling.
Mr Al-Bashir Hamisu, the Comptroller of the Unit, made the remark while briefing newsmen on the activities of the unit on Friday in Kaduna.
Hamisu attributed the successes recorded by the command to the improved capacity of the unitâs officers.
He kicked against the attitude of some unpatriotic citizens who were aiding and abetting smuggling in the zone.
According to him, the cooperation being accorded the agency and its officials from the border communities has reduced drastically.