TheNewsGuru

Tag: Arms

  • If we take up arms, hold Buhari responsible – IPOB

    The Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, on Monday said President Muhammadu Buhari and the five governors of the southeastern states were working hard to criminalize it despite its non-violent stand.

    In a press release signed by Emma Powerful, media and publicity secretary of the group, he said the Buhari administration and the five governors were worried that despite the brazen provocation and attack against its leader and members, the group had remained non-violent.

    It said that President Buhari should be blamed if the group decided to shed its non-violent stand and take to arms as it has been pushed beyond the limit.

    “It was the Nigerian government and her security operatives that brought violence into the Biafra agitation, not IPOB. Should IPOB decide to engage in an armed struggle at a future date, the world must hold the government of Buhari, Igbo governors and Ohaneze Ndigbo responsible.

    “We always held peaceful rallies and protests all around major cities across Biafraland without any violent incident or objection from the masses, but they decided to tag us terrorists in order to justify the violent crackdown on innocent Biafran populations. Our happiness is that today the world can see that IPOB is innocent and have totally vindicated us,” he said.

    The group which referred to the governors and the leadership of Ohaneze Ndigbo as political contractors said they were envious of IPOB’s popularity and the demonstrable feat it had achieved in the struggle.

  • Reps summon Customs, SSS over illegal arms importation

    The House of Representatives has on Wednesday summoned the Nigeria Customs Service and the State Security Service, SSS, to brief it on the influx of small arms and light weapons into the country.

    This was sequel to a motion under Matters of Public Importance by Obinna Chidoka (Anambra-PDP) to ascertain the cause of the influx and how to stop it.

    Mr. Chidoka said that the Customs had on four occasions this year intercepted firearms, totalling 2,671 pieces, smuggled into the country since January.

    He said that a set of firearms was seized in May while the third and fourth were seized in September.

    Mr. Chidoka said that the seizure in January was intercepted by the Customs after it had been purportedly checked and certified freed.

    He recalled that the firearms had left the premises of the port when it was tracked down after a tip-off.

    “The recent firearms seizure, which is the second this month and fourth in 2017 would appear to suggest that the syndicate behind the firearms has stepped up its nefarious trade.

    “This has far-reaching consequences for our dear nation, as firearms and light weapons are the lifeblood of organised crimes and criminality.

    “The influx has confirmed the recent report by the United Nations Regional Centre for Peace and Disarmament in Africa, which identified Nigeria as a destination of choice for smugglers of small arms and light weapons,’’ he said.

    Mr. Chidoka said that the invitation would enable the relevant agencies inform the House on how to curb the menace.

    The motion was unanimously adopted when it was put to a voice vote by the Speaker, Yakubu Dogara.

    The House also commended the Nigeria Customs Service for the seizure of the firearms.

    The speaker urged the Customs, SSS and the Office of Attorney General of the Federation to speed up investigations into the seizures and commence prosecution of the culprits to serve as deterrent to others.

     

    NAN

  • BREAKING: 28 Customs officers arrested in connection with seized arms

    The Nigerian Customs Service has on Wednesday arrested and detained 28 officers working at the Tin-Can Island Command of the Service in connection with a cache of over 1,500 arms imported illegally into the country.

    Recall that TheNewsGuru published yesterday another seizure of arms by Customs, which marked the fourth in the series of arms confiscation at tin can port alone within eight months.

    Following the arrest of the 28 officers by Customs on Wednesday [today], there have been panic among top officers of the command as some of them are likely to be affected by the ongoing investigation.

    It was also gathered that the detained officers whose names are yet to be released to the public are also being interrogated to determine their level of involvement in the botched plan to ferry the container of arms out of the port undetected

    According to a top official close to the command who spoke with TheNewsGuru.com under condition of anonymity the officers and their civilian collaborators will soon appear in court but not until the Service has carried out a detailed and thorough investigation on the matter.

    Meanwhile, some of the 28 officers might be left off the hook if the ongoing investigation does not find them culpable as some of them might only be involved in the documentation but not privy to the content of the container.

    It would be recalled that some operatives of the Intelligence Unit of the Service on routine duty on September 6th became suspicious of a 1x20ft container which was not initially listed for examination but had through questionable means been positioned with other containers for the day’s examination.

    They also discovered that the seal of the container had been cut and padlocked.

    The suspicious movement of the container made them ordered that the container be transferred immediately to the Enforcement Unit where it was examined and pump action riffles found in it.

    This is the fourth time in this year that the Customs will be intercepting arms and ammunitions from the ports in Lagos.
    A total of 2,656 riffles have been intercepted since the beginning of this year.

  • Customs dismiss officers linked to arms importation

    The Nigeria Customs Service has dismissed some of its officers who were found culpable in the importation and clearing of arms into the country earlier this year. The officers were found to have illegally released the container load of arms illegally, after collecting bribes.

    The officers’ dismissal was confirmed last weekend by the Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the Nigeria Customs Service; My Joseph Atah.

    Even though he gave no further details about the dismissed officers, our sources hinted that they might be some of those who were arraigned before a Federal High Court in Lagos recently.

    The officers are Mahmud Hassan, Oscar Okafor, Donatus Achinulo, Matthew Okoye, said be at large, and Salihu Danjuma.

    They were alleged to have conspired to import 661 pump action rifles into the country from Turkey through the Apapa Port in Lagos, using a 40-feet container, which they falsely claimed contained steel doors.

    To facilitate the illegal importation, the accused allegedly forged a number of documents including a bill of lading, a Form M and a Pre-Arrival Assessment Report.

    It was gathered that the accused allegedly forged a bill of lading issued at Istanbul on January 9, 2017, claiming that it was issued at Shanghai, China.

    In the forged bill of lading, they allegedly filled “steel door” as the content of the container instead of rifles.

    It was alleged further that they offered a bribe of N400,000 to an official of the Nigeria Customs Service attached to the Federal Operative Unit to influence the said officer not to conduct a “hundred per cent search on the 40-feet container with number PONU 825914/3.”

    The prosecution also alleged that the first accused, Hassan, corruptly gave N1 million to government officers at the Apapa Port in order to prevent the search of the container by Customs officials.

    The Customs PRO however explained that it was those involved in the first case that have been dismissed, adding that officers implicated in the second case involving importation of 440 pieces of riffles at Tin Can Island Port have only been suspended.

    On the officers, the Customs PRO said: “I can tell you that the officers involved in the arms scandals both the one that happened at Mile 2 and the one at Tin- Can have been dismissed and the suspects are facing prosecution. The whole cases of the arms are still in court this is the much I can tell you for now. All the suspects are under prosecution”.

  • Arms Importation: AGF Arraigns Customs officers, clearing agents

    Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice yesterday arraigned five men alleged to have imported into Nigeria arms and ammunition without lawful authority before a Federal high court sitting in Lagos southwest Nigeria.

    The accused are clearing agents and customs officers. Their names are Mahmud Hassan, Oscar Okafor, Donatus Achinulo, Matthew Okoye, said be at large, and Salihu Danjuma. They were alleged to have conspired to import 661 pump action rifles into the country.

    In a nine-count criminal charge number FHC/L/190C/17.filed before the court by the office of the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, the accused were alleged to have brought the rifles into the country from Turkey through the Apapa Port in Lagos, using a 40-feet container, which they falsely claimed contained steel doors.

    To facilitate the illegal importation, the accused allegedly forged a number of documents including a bill of lading, a Form M and a Pre-Arrival Assessment Report.

    According to the prosecution, in order to evade payment of Customs duty, the accused allegedly forged a bill of lading issued at Istanbul on January 9, 2017, claiming that it was issued at Shanghai, China.

    In the forged bill of lading, they allegedly filled “steel door” as the content of the container instead of rifles.

    It was alleged further that they offered a bribe of N400,000 to an official of the Nigeria Customs Service attached to the Federal Operative Unit to influence the said officer not to conduct a “hundred per cent search on the 40-feet container with number PONU 825914/3.”

    The prosecution also alleged that the first accused, Hassan, corruptly gave N1 million to government officials at the Apapa Port in order to prevent the search of the container by Customs officials.

    In one of the counts, the Federal Government alleged that the defendants had between 2012 and 2016 illegally imported several double-barreled shotguns, pump-action rifles and single-barreled shotguns into the country through Lagos Port.

    The offences alleged to have been committed by the accused persons are contrary to sections 1(2)(c), 1(14) (a)(i) and 3(6) of the Miscellaneous Offences Act Cap M17, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2014.

    All the accused present in court pleaded not guilty when the charges were read to them.

    Thereafter the prosecuting counsel, K.A. Fagbemi, applied for a date to commence the trial of the accused persons, but urged the court to order that the accused should be remanded in prison custody pending trial.

    In his short ruling, the Presiding Judge, Ayotunde Faji, while adjourning till September 12, 2017 for trial to commence ordered that the accused should be remanded in prison custody.

  • Coup Scare: Container-Load Of Arms Found In Lagos Port

    Another container filled with arms has been discovered at the Tin Can Island Port in Lagos, the Nigeria Customs disclosed on Tuesday.

    A source at the port told PREMIUM TIMES that the container was found at the Ports and Cargo Terminal of the Tin Can Island Ports.

    “As I speak to you, they’ve ordered everyone to go out of the terminal and they have locked up everywhere,” the source said.

    The spokesperson of the Nigeria Customs, Tin Can Island Command, Uche Ejesieme, confirmed the incident and said details would be made public later.

    “We are still counting,” Mr. Ejesieme told PREMIUM TIMES over the phone.

    The discovery of the arms is coming barely a week after the Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Tukur Buratai warned soldiers against fraternizing with disgruntled politicians to cause chaos in the country.

    To forestall any disturbance, the army chief also redeployed some army commanders from their units and created a forward base army unit in Katsina, the president’s state.

    There have been rumours of some soldiers plotting with some politicians to violently overthrow the government of President Muhammadu Buhari who is currently in London receiving treatment for an unknown ailment.

  • Wike sues police over attempt to search his houses for cash, arms

    Wike sues police over attempt to search his houses for cash, arms

    Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State has sued the police over an alleged move to search his house in Abuja for huge sums of cash and ammunition.

    Also joined as defendants in the suit filed before the Federal High Court in Abuja are the Inspector-General of Police, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and the Department of State Services.

    The governor said he had it on good authority that the defendants had already or were making moves to obtain a search warrant to carry out the planned search on his home at Ortega Close, Hassan Usman Katsina Street, Asokoro Extension, Abuja.

    According to him, the defendants were also making moves to search his other houses, including those in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.

    But he contended in the suit filed before the Federal High Court in Abuja through his lawyer, Mr. Sylva Ogwemoh (SAN), that such a search would violate his immunity as a sitting governor.

    He wants the court to restrain the defendants from giving effect to the alleged planned search of his homes.

    His lawyer, Ogwemoh, claimed that such a search could not be conducted by the defendants without violating Section 308 of the constitution, which conferred immunity on his client as a governor.

    He asked the court to determine ‘whether the defendants can by the combined effect of section 308 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended) and sections 149 (1) and 150 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act 2015 apply for, obtain, issue or, in any manner or form, effectively execute a search warrant’ at the residences of Wike.