Crime
Fuel smuggling persists in borders despite subsidy removal – Customs boss

Adewale Adeniyi, the Acting Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Customs Service, on Monday, vowed a heavy clampdown on oil thieves, insisting that the nation cannot “afford to let saboteurs take over our economy.”
Adeniyi, who said there were still cases of smuggling of Premium Motor Spirit, popularly called petrol, at Nigeria’s border stations despite the removal of subsidy on the commodity, said the agency had adopted new border patrol strategies to close in on oil thieves.
He made the disclosure on the sidelines of a sensitisation workshop on the Nigeria Customs Service Act 2023 for management staff of the NCS in Abuja.
Adeniyi spoke as the Nigeria National Petroleum Company Limited on Monday said it intercepted a suspected Cameroon-bound vessel with a cargo of crude oil on board.
The Chief Corporate Communications Officer, NNPCL, Garba Muhammad, said in a statement that the cargo was intercepted on July 7, 2023, by a private security contractor engaged by the NNPCL, Messrs Tantita Security Services.
“Following the receipt of credible intelligence, a private security contractor engaged by NNPC Ltd., Messrs Tantita Security Services, intercepted a suspicious vessel with a cargo of crude oil on board on July 7, 2023,” the statement read in part.
It added that the vessel, which is owned by a Nigerian registered company, was heading to Cameroun when it was apprehended.
“The Vessel, MT TURA II (IMO number: 6620462), owned by a Nigerian Registered Company, Holab Maritime Services Limited with registration number RC813311, was heading to Cameroun with the cargo on board when it was apprehended at an offshore location (Latitude: 5.8197194477543235°, Longitude: 4.789002723991871°), with the Captain and Crew members on board,” it said.
President Bola Tinubu announced the end of the petrol subsidy during his inaugural address on May 29, 2023, after the Federal Government had kept subsidising the product for several decades, spending trillions of naira in the process.
The government had repeatedly complained that petrol from Nigeria was being smuggled to other West African countries, due to it low price in Nigeria as a result of subsidy, when compared to its cost in these nations.
To address this and other fuel subsidy-related concerns, a lot of institutions and professionals had called for a halt in the subsidy regime, which was eventually implemented by Tinubu.
But the Customs CG revealed on Monday that smuggling had reduced but it had not stopped in some border stations.
As such, he said the agency was reviewing its enforcement strategies, adding that based on the new Nigeria Customs Service Act 2023, there would be heavy penalties against violators of the recently passed legislation.
Asked whether petrol was still being smuggled out of Nigeria after the removal of subsidy on the commodity, he replied, “We still have some incidences in some border stations.
“The rate has reduced and we are going to be watching the situation very closely. The situation of fuel is very sensitive and we cannot afford to let the saboteurs take over our economy.”
Enforcement strategy review
Commenting on plans by the service to review policies that constitute obstacles to trade, Adeniyi said this had to do with the enforcement strategies of the NCS, as well as its procedures and processes at the ports.
“One of the things that I intend to do as we start is that we need to take a look at our procedures and processes in the ports and border areas. Also, our enforcement strategies. We are going to review all that.
“And we want to do them in such a way that they promote user-friendliness and economic growth without compromising our national security. We will get details when we unfold the plans,” Adeniyi stated.
He said the new legislation of the service would impose heavy sanctions and penalties on violators of customs laws.
“We discovered that the previous legislation did not provide sanctions that are punitive enough for violations of customs laws. Some of the fines were ridiculous. Remember that this (old) piece of legislation was put in place in 1958.
“You won’t believe that in some parts of the legislation, some fines were written on pennies, and when you translate them they mean nothing. So criminals are always willing to commit fraud because they know that they are only going to get a slap on the wrist.
“So what this new law has brought are very heavy punitive sanctions that should deter people from committing those violations against the customs law,” the NCS boss stated.
He said the defunct Customs and Excise Management Act Cap C45 LFN 2004 law was enacted 63 years ago and had remained in operation since then without any significant amendment notwithstanding the expansion in government, growth in population and over dynamic progress and challenges in the economy.
“Consequent upon this, several attempts were made in the past to cause amendments or the repeal of CEMA to no avail. The efforts were necessary because the provisions of CEMA had become obsolete and could no longer adequately meet the contemporary fiscal policies of the government and the mandate of the service.
“This situation undoubtedly propelled the National Assembly through a private member bill to initiate the repeal and enactment of a new Nigeria Customs Service Bill which was passed by the parliament and assented to by (former) President Muhammadu Buhari,” Adeniyi stated.
NNPCL intercepts
Meanwhile, NNPCL said its preliminary investigations revealed that the crude oil cargo on board was illegally sourced from a well jacket offshore Ondo State, Nigeria.
The NNPCL spokesman, Muhammad, said there was no valid documentation for the vessel or the crude oil cargo on board at the time of the arrest.
“Further investigation into the activities of the vessel at the NNPC Ltd. Command and Control Centre also revealed that the vessel has been operating in stealth mode for the last 12 years. The last reported location of the vessel was Tin Can Port in July 2011.
“Details of this arrest and the outcomes of the investigations were escalated to the appropriate government authorities, upon which it was concluded to destroy the vessel to serve as a strong warning and deterrent to all those participating in such illegal activities to cease and desist,” he said.
Stressing that it was important to destroy vessels involved in transporting stolen crude oil, Muhammad said the illegal trade of stolen crude oil inflicts significant economic losses on Nigeria and legitimate stakeholders in the oil industry.
He added that oil theft “also perpetuates a cycle of corruption, environmental devastation, and social instability.”
Also, the Executive Director, Technical and Operations of Tantita Security Services, Captain Warredi Enisuoh, while addressing journalists on Monday during an inspection of the intercepted vessel, anchored at Oporoza in Gbaramatu kingdom in Warri South West Local Government Area of Delta State, stated that the ship was arrested with 13 crew members during a sting operation.
Enisuoh disclosed that the pipeline surveillance firm had deployed both human and technical intelligence in monitoring the movements of the vessel until it was finally caught on Friday.
“Unknown to the perpetrators, we have been monitoring the movements of the vessel until we finally apprehended it off the coast in Ondo State,” he said.
“The original name of the vessel was Ali-Riza-Bey but it was altered to ‘MT Tura 11’ to evade the eagle eyes of security agencies,” he added.
While noting that the vessel had once been arrested for same crude theft, but disappeared in mysterious circumstances, Enisuoh affirmed to newsmen saying “we are here with the same vessel committing the same atrocity.”
Consequently, the vessel was handed over to the troops of the military Joint Task Force Operation Delta Safe which has the mandate to rid Niger Delta of all criminal acts.
Speaking, the Commander, JTF Operation Delta Safe (OPDS), Rear Admiral Olusegun Ferreira, who led other service chiefs to the scene, told newsmen that an investigation is ongoing to unravel the perpetrators of the act just as he warned criminals to steer clear of the maritime domain.
Ferreira assured Nigerians that the long arms of the law would catch up with the hoodlums.
Marketers react
Reacting to the revelation by the NCS that petrol was still being smuggled, oil marketers and operators in the downstream sector stated that this was possible but very risky due to the deregulation of the downstream oil sector.
They also charged the NCS to arrest culprits, as well as deploy tracking systems on petroleum tankers in a bid to end the smuggling of PMS and other refined products.
“There is a high risk in smuggling petrol out of Nigeria now, though I cannot rule out the fact that it is possible,” the National President, Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, Chinedu Okonkwo, stated.
He added, “The risk is high because you might get there and they will not buy from you, unless the smugglers are taking adulterated products to these neighbouring countries. The Customs should also do their work. If they catch anyone, they should use him as an example.”
Okonkwo said there should be the deployment of tracking systems on tankers to track their movements nationwide.
“At a time we brought a technology for them (Customs), where you can track any truck by knowing where it is coming from or where it is going. But immediately we were about rolling it out, COVID-19 struck.
“So there are technologies to fight these things and if they want to collaborate with us we will bring it up again. IPMAN is ready to demonstrate it again if they are ready to work with us,” he stated.
On his part, the President, Petroleum Products Retail Outlets Owners Association of Nigeria, Billy Gillis-Harry, told our correspondent that PETROAN had developed a technology to help tackle this.
He said, “A criminal will always be a criminal. Most times there is nothing you can do to deter a criminal until you mitigate their criminal activities. That is why PETROAN developed a 3-P solution, which is the Petroleum Product Passport solution that will completely stamp out smuggling.
“This is because nobody will be able to smuggle products when this solution is deployed, for at the end of the day we have to depend on a technology that is dependable and reliable. The 3-P solution is working for PETROAN, so we recommend it to the Federal Government and other operators in the downstream sector.”
Also speaking on the issue, the Secretary, IPMAN, Abuja-Suleja, Mohammed Shuaibu, “The customs serviceman the borders of Nigeria and they should do their work. Let them go after the smugglers, for as far as we are concerned, deregulation has come to stay.
Meanwhile, some oil marketers said cross border smuggling of petrol would persist except prices in Nigeria correlates with prices of fuel in neighbouring countries.
A former Chairman of the Major Oil Marketers Association of Nigeria and CEO/MD of 11 Plc, Tunji Oyebanji, said the real prices of petrol would be determined by the price of the product in neighbouring countries.
“The Federal Government needs to eradicate the economic incentives that are making marketers be willing to take products meant for Nigeria outside the country, and that would happen when independent marketers start importing, and prices at the pump reflect the new landing cost. But as we speak, we are still selling products being sold to us by the NNPCL which is still being subsidised, so it is Nigeria that is losing, not marketers. Rumour has it that about 30 per cent of products are being smuggled out of the country, so that’s where the problem is currently,” he said.
A professor of Economics at the Olabisi Onabanjo University, Tella Sheriffdeen, advised the government to activate local refining.
Crime
YELWATA KILLINGS: DSS Files Charges Against Suspects over Benue Attacks

The Department of State Services (DSS) on Thursday filed six separate charges at the Federal High Court in Abuja against terror suspects responsible for deadly attacks in Yelwata village, Guma Local Government Area of Benue State.
The assaults left numerous people dead and others injured.
The charges involve nine suspects apprehended through intelligence-led operations by DSS operatives. However, only two of these suspects were charged in court on four counts related to the Yelwata massacre.
The accused, Haruna Adamu and Muhammad Abdullahi, both from Awe Local Government Area of Nasarawa State, alongside others still at large, are alleged to have carried out attacks on Abinsi and Yelwata villages on June 13, 2025.
Their actions violate Section 12 of the Terrorism Prevention Act, 2022.
The two suspects are accused of conspiring with Musa Beniyon, Bako Malowa, Ibrahim Tunga, Asara Ahnadu, Legu Musa, Adamu Yale, Boddi Ayuba, Pyeure Damina, and others still at large, to execute the Yelwata attacks.
According to the DSS charges, the defendants knowingly concealed critical information about the planned terrorist attacks and killings in Abinsi and Yelwata between June 13 and 14, which could have aided in preventing the acts and apprehending the perpetrators.
Filed by the Director of Public Prosecution of the Federation (DPPF), Muhammad Abubakar, on behalf of the federal government, the charges further accuse the defendants of preparing to commit acts of terrorism with the named co-conspirators, in violation of Section 29 of the Terrorism Prevention and Prohibition Act, 2022.
In a separate charge, two more suspects, Terkende Ashuwa and Amos Alede from Guma Local Government Area, were charged with three counts for allegedly conducting reprisal attacks against terror suspects involved in the Abinsi and Yelwata incidents.
In case file FHC/ABJ/CR/448/2025, the pair are accused of attending and participating in meetings that led to acts of terrorism causing destruction of private property and economic loss, including the death of 12 cattle in Ukpam village, Benue State.
This is contrary to Section 12 of the Terrorism Prevention and Prohibition Act.
The second count alleges that in July 2025, they conspired during a meeting in Daudu town, Guma LGA, to carry out terrorist acts together with others still at large, violating Section 26 of the same Act.
The third count claims they knowingly supported and received material assistance in the form of locally made guns and an AK-47 rifle from one Alhaji Uba to commit terrorism, leading to property destruction and cattle loss in Ukpam village, punishable under Section 13 of the Terrorism Prevention Act.
Additionally, Halima Haliru Umar, a 32-year-old woman from Faskari Local Government Area, Katsina State, faces a four-count charge for concealing information about Alhaji Sani, a suspected gun runner, bandit, and kidnapper.
Her actions allegedly prevented the timely apprehension of criminal elements, violating Section 6 of the Terrorism Prevention and Prohibition Act.
She is also accused of aiding terrorism by transporting 302 rounds of live AK-47 ammunition to bandits in July 2025, contrary to Section 13 of the Act.
In another case, two elderly men—75-year-old Nanbol Tali and Timnan Manjo—face four-count charges for illegal possession and trading of firearms.
They are accused of buying and selling two locally fabricated AK-47 rifles without licenses for 3 million naira, violating Sections 9 and 27 of the Firearms Act, 2024.
They allegedly possessed one AK-47 rifle in Mangu LGA, Plateau State, and purchased three long-range revolver rifles at 60,000 naira each from an individual named Chomo, intending to resell them to bandits.
In a related development, Danjuma Antu of Jos North, Plateau State, was charged on five counts for unlawful possession of two locally fabricated pistols capable of firing 9mm ammunition, contrary to Section 3 and punishable under Section 27 of the Firearms Act, 2024.
Similarly, Silas Iduh Oloche of Agatu LGA, Benue State, faces six counts of unlawful possession of 18 firearms (including grenades) without licenses, violating Sections 3 and 27 of the Firearms Act.
He was reportedly found with 683 live rounds of 7.62mm ammunition on August 2, 2025, contrary to Section 8 of the same Act.
No trial date has yet been scheduled for the suspects charged on Thursday, August 28, 2025.
Crime
Two feared dead as violence breaks out at Balogun Market, Lagos Island

Panic broke out at the popular Balogun Market on Lagos Island on Wednesday, after a violent clash reportedly left at least two people dead.
Videos circulating on social media showed disturbing scenes from the incident.
According to reports, a man, apparently attacked with a machete, was seen lying motionless on the ground.
Another video seen online captured the suspected assailant, stripped naked and reportedly lynched by an angry mob.
The cause of the unrest has not been clearly established.
While some eyewitnesses suggest the violence was the result of a cult-related confrontation, others alleged it stemmed from an inter-tribal dispute between Yoruba and Igbo traders.
In the aftermath, shops were hurriedly closed as traders and passersby scrambled for safety.
Security operatives were yet to release an official statement on the incident at the time of filing this report.
Crime
Chinese national apprehended in Anambra for involvement in illegal mining.

A 45-year-old Chinese national, Mr. Mu Hua Qiang, has been arrested in Aguleri, Anambra State, for alleged involvement in illegal mining. He was apprehended by operatives of the Operation Clean and Healthy Anambra (OCHA) Brigade during a surveillance operation and handed over to the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID), Awka.
Police spokesperson Tochukwu Ikenga confirmed the arrest, stating that the suspect’s statement was taken and he is in custody pending further investigation. Authorities say illegal mining remains a serious concern in Anambra due to its environmental and security risks.
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