… Five Suspects Arrested, Undergoing Interrogation
Men of the Nigeria Customs Service Ogun I Command were on Friday attacked by smugglers at Ilashe village in Ipokia Local Government Area of Ogun State while on patrol injuring an officer.
The Public Relations Officer, Abdullahi Maiwada, who disclosed this in a statement he signed for the Customs Area Comptroller , Ogun 1 Area Command, also disclosed that five suspects have been arrested in connection with the attack and that they are been interrogated.
The PRO stated that at about 1930hours on Friday, May 8, 2020, officers and men of Nigeria Customs Service Ogun I Command went on information patrol to Ilashe village in Ipokia Local Government Area of Ogun state.
He stated that during operation, they intercepted 35 bags of smuggled parboiled rice of 50kg each ferried by a convoy of motorcyclists popularly known as okada.
Abdullahi further said that on their way out of the area, the die-hard smugglers mobilised themselves in an overwhelming number, launching a vicious attack with assorted weapons on officers performing their lawful duties.
“In an effort to repel the attack and avoid bloodshed, one Customs officer, Assistant Superintendent Chidi Johnson was brutally matcheted, sustaining deep cuts in various parts of his body.
“The seriously wounded Officer was immediately rushed to the hospital for medical attention, and luckily he is responding to treatment (pictures attached).
“To this end, five suspects have been arrested in connection with the incident and are currently undergoing interrogation,” Abdullahi said.
He stated that it was instructive to note that Friday was a date set aside for total lockdown in Ogun state due to the surge of the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to him, “We find it unfortunate and strange, that the daredevil smugglers who have no regards for laws of the land or the disease ravaging the global community resorted to crossing the border through illegal routes to perpetrate such nefarious activities in total disregard of the health and economic well being of Nigerians. Principally, we seize this opportunity to enjoin the faceless unpatriotic smuggling cartels to stop using uninformed youths as cannon fodders in their nefarious trade.
He continued, “We challenge them to bring their own biological children to attack personnel of the Service and have a taste of the consequences of such act.
