Border patrol arrests 156 illegal immigrants

The Joint Border Patrol Team Sector 2, South West Zone, Lagos has said that it handed over 156 illegal immigrants to officers of the Nigerian Immigration Service in the third quarter of 2024.

The team also said  2,633 bags of foreign per boiled rice and 4.019 jerrycans of petrol worth N1.4bn were intercepted within the period under review.

The Coordinator of the team, Mohammed Shuaibu, a Deputy Controller of Customs, disclosed this while displaying the seized contraband to journalists in Ikeja on Wednesday.

He added that these interceptions took place within the South-West region.

“Within the period under review, a total of 125 persons were refused entry, 11 persons were refused departure, 109 suspected male immigrants, and  47  female immigrants were arrested.

“We also intercepted 18 victims of human traffic, and two suspended trafficking agents were arrested,” he said.

Shuaibu stated that within the period under review, the sum of N31.3m was obtained as an auction value.

Giving details of the seizures, he said,  “4,019 jerrycans of PMS, 2.633 bags of foreign rice, 868 jumbo bales of second-hand clothing, 790 bottles of codeine syrup, 338 sacks of artificial razing, 154 blocks of cannabis sativa, 135 sacks of used footwear, 77 sacks of ginger, 45 bags of calcium propionate, were seized.”

According to him, the team also intercepted 15 units of fairly used cars, and five used cars as means of conveyance were also detained.

“Four trucks, three cartons of  Matanti Macaroni, three cartons of Matanti Spaghetti, two units of motorcycles, one unit of tricycle, were also intercepted within the period under review, “ he stated.

He added that two suspects were arrested in connection with the seizures.

Shuaibu mentioned that the seized contrabands were deposited into the six government warehouses across the sector.

He added that the team also recovered N26m only revenue through the issuance of debit notes on vehicles and other goods that were underpaid.

He warned that the team is fully prepared to face the challenge ahead.

 “As we are into the last quarter of the year 2024, we are enhancing our collaboration and the use of intelligence to contend with the possibility of more desperation from the smugglers,” he warned.

Recall that the Federal Government in 2019 constituted a joint operation with the view to curbing smuggling activities and other cross-border crimes that threaten our national and economic security.