Ladipo Sanusi/
Security agents, including Department of State Security officials, at the Apapa port received one million naira bribe to clear the consignment of 661 pump action rifles smuggled into the country last December.
One of the accused persons undergoing trial for the offence, Mamudu Hassan, a retired Assistant Comptroller of Customs, stated this in his confessional statement tendered as exhibit during a trial-within-trial at a Federal High Court in Lagos today.
Mamudu’s statement was contained in a video evidence recorded during his interrogation by the DSS.
Giving evIdence in court, a DSS operative, Jaiye Emmanuel, said the video was recorded on March 27, 2017, between 2 pm. and 2.45 pm.
In the video, which was played in court, Mamudu gave a breakdown of how the money was shared among the various security agencies.
According to him: “the examiners were given N200, 000, C.I.O. got N100, 000, Enforcement got N200, 000, police and SSS (DSS) got between N20, 000, N25, 000, and N30, 000, the two gates got N200, 000, Exit gate got N20, 000, and final gate got N50, 000.”
Mamudu also told his interrogators that he first charged the importer N3.8 million when he was told that the consignments were steel doors, but raised the bill to four million naira, when he later learned that the consignments included 661 pump action guns.
The Nigerian Customs Service had on June 14, 2017 arraigned Hassan and another of its offices, Salisu Abdulahi Danjuma, alongside Oscar Orkafor, Donatus Ezebunwa Achinulo and Matthew Okoye, before Justice Ayotunde Faji, on charges bordering on illegal importation of fire arms, conspiracy, forgery and altering of documents, offering of graft to government officials and importation of prohibited goods.
The offences according to the prosecutor, Mr. Julius Ajakaiye, are contrary to to and punishable under sections 3(6),1(14)(a)(I) 1(2) of the Miscellaneous Offences Act Cap. M17, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004. And section 98(1) (b) of the Criminal Code Act.
The Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) in charge number FHC/L/190c/17 alleged that the accused persons conspired to illegally import into Nigeria 661 Pump Action Rifles.
They were also alleged to have forged some documents which included, two Bill of Ladings, Customs’ Form M and Pre-Arrival Assessment Report (PAAR) used in smuggling the the said 661 rifles Into the country.
In particular, Hassan was alleged to have corruptly offered the sum of N400, 000 to one Aliu Musa, the Examination Officer of the Federal Operation Unit of the Customs Service with an intent to prevent 100 percent search on a container marked PONU 825914/3, which was used in bringing the illegal arms into the country.
He was also alleged to have corruptly gave the sum of N1 million to government officials at Apapa Port, through his colleague, Danjuma Abdulahi, in order to prevent the search of the container used in bringing into the country the 661 illegally imported Pump Action rifles.
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