Operatives of the Federal Operations Unit, FOU, Zone A of the Nigeria Customs Service, NCS, have intercepted two tankers laden with poorly refined 80,055 litres of Automotive Gas Oil, AGO, popularly known as diesel, in the Ijebu Ode area of Ogun State.
The Acting Controller of the Unit, Hussein Ejibunu, who handed over the petroleum products to officials of the Nigeria Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Agency, NMDPRA, said the drivers of the trucks escaped upon sighting Customs officers on patrol.
The Customs boss said after a study of the documents being used to convey the product and analyses of samples of the product, it was discovered that the papers were forged and the diesel was of poor standard.
He said customs then wrote to NMDPRA to verify the status of the products and the authenticity of documents found in the vehicles, which were both confirmed to be fake.
The Acting Controller said one of the tankers with registration number DBT 599 XA was laden with 44,450 litres while the other one, with registration number USL 561 ZC, had 35,605 litres of the AGO.
Ejibunu warned that FOU Zone A area of responsibility will always be a no-go area for smugglers, duty evaders and perpetrators of other illegal activities.
He advised Nigerians to be patriotic and shun any form of commercial activity that runs foul of the law.
Patrick Musa, an official of the NMDPRA, while receiving the seizures, explained that the products were found to be off specification and fell below approved standards for use in Nigeria.
He added that the product could not have been lifted from approved depots. Musa commended the Nigeria Customs Service for the seizure, which he described as the good beginning of a productive synergy between NMDPRA and the NCS.
Vanguard.
