Bamisaiye Presents Fresh Seizures, Harps On Arrest of Suspects

BY FUNMI ALUKO

New Area Controller of the Nigeria Customs Service, Western Marine Command, Comptroller Paul Bamisaiye Tuesday announced fresh seizures of offensive items that comprise of rice and illicit substances, even as he tasked marine operatives to make the arrest of suspected smugglers a priority; same way they combat offensive goods.
While handing over the seized illicit drugs tasked personnel at sea on patrol to shoot henceforth disable escaping suspects by shooting on the legs, in an effort to bring them to justice and to reduce the menace of smuggling.
Speaking further on the operations leading to the seizures, the chief marine operative said the service will not only continue to intercept means of conveyances of the illicit items but maintained that personnel under his command will improve on the arrest of smugglers .
”I told my officers that from now that we are not supposed to kill but to shoot the smugglers on their legs. Our officers are marine officers but they are not skillful like the smugglers when it comes to swimming, therefore they should shoot them and bring them to the command’s clinic for treatment”, he said.
Noting that the narrative of daredevil smugglers always escaping while contraband or offensive items alone are intercepted must change, the new marine commando appealed to those involved in smuggling using the waterways to seek legitimate trade, warning that henceforth, the service will no longer take kindly to any form of economic criminality on the command’s territorial waterways.
Giving a breakdown of the seizures, he said:
“The Western Marine Command of Nigeria Customs Service in its continued efforts to purge the Western Waterways of the offensive activities of smuggling intercepted and seized Seventeen (17) Sacks containing One Thousand, Two Hundred and Fifty Seven (1,257) loaves of Cannabis Sativa with a combined weight of 720kg worth over 96 Million Naira.
“At about 2300hrs on Wednesday 15 May 2024, a patrol team of Officers and Men of WMC at the Bar beach station of the Command received credible intelligence on movement of a boat on the high sea along the beach location carrying items suspected to be offending items. Upon receiving the information the team moved towards the described location and intercepted one fiber boat fitted with 200HP Yamaha Engine carrying sacks of the suspected items.“

In a related development on Sunday 19 May 2024 a joint team of Officers and Men of the Command while on routine patrol along Panko Creek, Badagry Waterways, intercepted one wooden boat fitted with a 25HP Yamaha engine carrying suspected contraband items and upon sighting our patrol Boats abandoned their Boat and dived into the water.

“A careful examination of the items being conveyed revealed Five Hundred and Five (505) Bags of 50kg foreign parboiled rice having a combined DPV of Fifty Nine Million, One Hundred and Eighty Five Thousand Naira (N59, 185,000.00) of both items and Means of Conveyance. The action of these smugglers is a direct contravention of sections 245 and 254 of NCS Act 2023 which WMC is responsible for enforcing.
“In the spirit of interagency synergy and collaboration in line with the Comptroller General’s (CGC) policy thrust, the Western Marine Command (WMC) under my leadership has received approval to handover Seventeen (17) sacks containing One thousand, Two Hundred and Fifty Seven (1,257) loaves of Cannabis Sativa which includes Seventy Two (72) loaves that were previously seized by the Command with a combined weight of 609kg worth over 96 Million Naira to the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA).”
While appreciating the CGC and Management of NCS for the motivation they provide, the WMC boss appealed to the general and trading public not to engage in illicit drugs.
“And to stop smuggling which lead to economic sabotage as drugs continue to be a menace to society and serves as the source of other criminal acts, like banditry, kidnapping and armed robbery.

“Western Marine Command is poised more than ever to improve on this performance in the years ahead,” he affirmed
After receiving the illicit items, NDLEA acting Commander Narcotics, Marine Command , Bashir Magaji, commended the service for the fight against smuggling.