Customs Releases Access Bank’s Bullion Van Intercepted For Smuggling

Barely two years after, Controller General of Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Comptroller Adewale Adeniyi on Friday, released a bullion van belonging to the Abeokuta branch of Access Bank allegedly intercepted for smuggling some bags of foreign parboiled rice into the country.

This is coming as the Ogun II Area Command of the Service disclosed that it generated a total sum of N21. 657 billion as revenue for the year 2023 ending.

The bullion van with registration number: FKJ 993 BZ, which has for the past 22 months been detained at the Customs’ House in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital was released yesterday alongside a total sum of N24, 489, 500 which the vehicle was conveying from one of its branches in the border axis to the Abeokuta headquarters before veering into smuggling some bags of rice.

Releasing the vehicle yesterday, Customs Controller for Ogun II Area Command, Comptroller Bisi Alade disclosed that the bullion van was intercepted by operatives of the Joint Border Patrol Team while conveying the contrabands at the Olorunda axis of the Sokoto – Ijoun/Joga expressway in the Abeokuta North Local Government Area on April year 2022.

“The foreign parboiled bags of rice, each weighing 59kg were carefully concealed in the said vehicle under the guise of conveying only the nation’s currency into its headquarters in Abeokuta.  Consequently, the said vehicle was conveyed to the Customs House in Abeokuta for safekeeping”.

Explaining that the currency of the total sum of over N24. 489 Million being carried alongside the Contrabands was deposited at the Abeokuta branch of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Alade however, disclosed that three suspects arrested in connection with the seizure had been charged to court and currently under an administrative bail.

The Ogun II NCS Controller, Alade explained that the release of the bullion van followed an appeal launched by the bank to the NCS’ Controller General, Adeniyi, who in compliance with the provisions of Section 248 (1) and (2) of the NCS’ Act 2023, approved the release of the vehicle and the money, while the contrabands was converted to seizure “in line with Section 168 of the Customs’ Act 2023.