Crime
Customs intercepts dried shark fins, donkey genitals worth N2.22bn in Lagos
The Murtala Muhammed Airport Command of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has intercepted items suspected to be dried shark fins and dried donkey genitals worth N1.22 billion at the Lagos airport.
The command’s Area Controller, Comptroller Muhammed Yusuf, said this in a news conference in Lagos on Thursday.
Yusuf noted that this was through coordinated anti-smuggling activities in synergy with critical stakeholders.
Yusuf while briefing the media on the scorecard of the command from January to July, said one suspect each was apprehended for the seized items and the investigation was ongoing.
He noted that the suspect intercepted for the shark fins was a Nigerian and the item was heading to China while that of donkey genitals was a Chinese heading to Hong Kong.
According to him, the six packages of suspected dried shark fins have a Free on Board (FOB) value of N221.9 million, while the 25 packages of donkey genitals have a FOB value of N1.01 billion, both totalling N1.22 billion.
“These items were seized mainly because of various forms of infractions on export guidelines and failure to comply with CITES Law on endangered species as enshrined in the Nigeria Customs Service Act.
“From the number of fins we have here, the implication is that we have over a thousand sharks that have been endangered. We cannot go on with this illegal trade because, at the end of the day, it will be a problem for us.
“Animals in the sea have a role they play, endangering them will affect the ecosystem and for us officers at the NCS, we will always make sure that these items under the export prohibition list cannot go out,” he said.
The customs boss noted that this was the first time the command intercepted such and it was nabbed at the exit point after all documentation.
He said that the shark fin was declared as such while that of the donkey genitals was declared as animal cow genitals.
Yusuf added that the items would be handed over to a unit in customs for further investigation and eventually they would unravel more information.
On the scorecard from January to July, Yusuf said the command generated N47.25 billion, representing 83.24 per cent of the target met.
“When compared to the same period in 2022 of N40.335 billion, a progressive difference of N6.914 billion, representing 17.14 per cent increase,” he said.
Yusuf appreciated officers and men of the command for their dedication to the service and urged them to always adhere strictly to the rules of engagements while discharging their statutory duties.
He also appreciated the acting Controller General of Customs, Mr Adewale Adeniyi, and his management team for always giving them the leverage to perform.
The Anambra State Police Command has foiled a cult initiation ceremony in Nawfia, Njikoka Local Government Area of the state.
Spokesperson for the Command, SP Tochukwu Ikenga, disclosed this in a statement issued on Tuesday in Awka.
According to Ikenga, the operation was carried out by police operatives around 9:30am on June 15, leading to the arrest of six suspects at the scene.
Recovered during the raid were one Jojef pump action gun, two cartridges, and a golden-coloured Lexus SUV with registration number ATN 202 AE. Other items found include two cutlasses, two scissors, a cap bearing the inscription of the Supreme Vikings Confraternity, charms, and substances suspected to be hard drugs.
“They are currently undergoing police interrogation to get more insight into their modus operandi, after which the case will be charged to court on the conclusion of the investigations,” Ikenga stated.
The police spokesperson reassured residents of the command’s unwavering commitment to fighting cultism and other related crimes across the state.
An Ikeja Magistrates’ Court, Lagos, on Wednesday, remanded two persons, Olaitan Fasasi and Kehinde Tobiloba in a correctional facility over alleged attempted murder.
Fasasi, 40, and Tobiloba, 26, whose addresses were not provided, are being charged with conspiracy, attempted murder and membership of a secret society.
The Magistrate, Mr L.A Owolabi, did not take the plea of the defendants for want of jurisdiction.
Owolabi directed the police to forward the case file to the Director of Public Prosecution for legal advice.
He thereafter adjourned the case until May 31 for mention.
The Prosecutor, Josephine Ikhayere, told the court that the defendants committed the offences at about 5.02p.m on Feb. 15, at Mushin, Lagos.
She said that Fasasi, Tobiloba and others now at large, attempted to commit murder by shooting at a resident, Alfred Ademola.
“They armed themselves with a locally made gun. They belong to Eiye Confraternity, a group proscribed by law,”, she said.
Ikhayere said that the offences contravened Sections 230(1) and 411 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2012.
He said that the actions of the defendants also contravened Section 2(3)(a)(b)(c)(d) of the unlawful societies and Cultism Law of Lagos State Law.
An Area Court in Jos, on Tuesday, sentenced one Jeptha John, to three months imprisonment for stealing a Redmi mobile phone valued at N165, 000.
The judge, Shawomi Bokkos, sentenced the John after he pleaded guilty to the offence.
The judge, however, gave the convict an option to pay N20, 000 fine and N50, 000 restitution to the complainant.
Bokkos said that if the convict defaulted in paying the restitution, three months should be added to his sentence to make it six months imprisonment.
Earlier, the police prosecutor, Insp Monday Dabit, told the court that the case was reported at the B Division Police Station, Jos, on Dec. 1, 2024, by Ms Nerat Danjuma.
He said that the complainant alleged that the defendant trespassed into her house and stole her mobile phone valued at N165, 000.
The prosecutor further told the court that the offence contravened the Plateau State Penal Code, Law of Northern Nigeria.
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