The Nigeria Customs Service reported intercepting 28,735 gallons of contraband Premium Motor Spirit on Lagos waterways in the midst of severe gasoline shortages in several regions of the country.

Comptroller Abubakar Umar, Customs Area Controller for the Western Marine Command of the service, recently told journalists that the PMS, which was comparable to a truckload of the commodity, was worth N5m.

In four months, the command also confiscated 29,660 packages of cannabis and 1,575 sacks of rice with a duty-paid value of N2.2 billion, he added.Information Guide Nigeria

Other Top Stories:

• Akwa Ibom father kills daughter, uncle slays nephew
• Four Anambra men gang-rape teenager over father’s ‘sin’
• PDP chairman is dead
• Courts nullify primary elections in Kwara, Kaduna

Umar provided a breakdown of the seizures, stating that the seized cannabis sativa (marijuana) weighed 16,663kg and was believed to be worth N2.06bn, as well as the interception of 1,575 bags of imported parboiled rice equating to more than two trailer loads of rice for N39.375m.

According to him, “28,735 liters of PMS contained in 1,077 kegs of 25liter size was equivalent to a tanker-load valued at N4,921,700 and other seizures were 7 wooden boats with 4 engines as means of conveyance worth N13,750,000 and 2 sacks of suspected gun powder.

“Importation like this won’t help our country’s development. We all know the harms that cannabis sativa poses to our youths. It is illegal to ship such contraband into Nigeria and we will continue to thwart the efforts of unscrupulous importers who derive joy in bringing in such substance into the country.”

However, according to the head of WMC Customs, it has been exceedingly difficult for police to apprehend individuals involved in waterway smuggling, as the suspects typically dive into the water.