Customs to auction 14,375 litres of PMS seized from Cameroon-bound smugglers

From Aniekan Aniekan, Calabar

The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has announced plans to auction 14,375 litres of Premium Motor Spirit (petrol) seized from smugglers heading to Cameroon.

The PMS was seized by the NCS special anti-smuggling task force, Operation Whirlwind, in the Calabar axis of the zone.

National Coordinator of the task force in Zone C, DCC Abubakar Aliyu, disclosed that the duty paid value for the product stands at ₦14,375,000.

According to him, “Within the past several weeks, acting on credible and actionable intelligence, our operatives successfully dismantled a coordinated network involved in the illegal exportation of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) to neighbouring Cameroon.

“During the operation, we intercepted 235 jerry-cans of 25 litres each and 40 drums (200 litres each) of Premium Motor Spirit, amounting to a total volume of 14,375 litres.

“The total Duty Paid Value (DPV) of the seized petroleum products stands at ₦14,375,000 (Fourteen Million, Three Hundred and Seventy-Five Thousand Naira Only).

“Through sustained surveillance and strategic interdictions across identified flashpoints, including Ikang, Bakassi, Ikom and Ikot-Idareka,” he said.

He added that the to-be-auctioned products were being diverted for illegal export in clear violation of Nigeria’s laws governing the distribution and movement of petroleum products.

DCC Aliyu stressed that the NCS remains resolute in its constitutional mandate to safeguard Nigeria’s economy, secure critical national assets and combat all forms of smuggling and economic sabotage.

Momodu Dauda, the Zone C area comptroller, said the event underscores the unwavering commitment of the NCS to protecting the national economy, enforcing laws and suppressing smuggling activities that undermine legitimate trade.