As smugglers move exotic cars to hotels, plazas

Emma Ujah

The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has extended its operations against smuggled cars to the nation’s capital where it has commenced seizing exotic cars on which duties were not paid at the point of entry.

The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has extended its operations against smuggled cars to the nation’s capital where it has commenced seizing exotic cars on which duties were not paid at the point of entry.

The service raided Fraser Suites in the Central Business District of Abuja, between Wednesday night and early hours of this morning where it seized four cars, including bulletproof jeeps.

It was learnt that another six of such cars were still parked in the premises when Vanguard visited the hotel about 10 am but that the manager of the hotel wrote an undertaken to provide the documents of the affected cars.

The NCS  image maker, Mr Joseph Attah said that the organization was not out to intimidate anyone and that once the manager produced the documents as promised, the vehicles would be returned to him, without delay.

Some media reports indicated the NCS officials stormed the hotel while guests, including diplomats and military personnel, were still sleeping and chased them out of their rooms.

However, Mr Attah denied that any such thing happened during the operation.

According to him, “How can customs do such a thing?  It was a neat operation which involved our officials speaking with only the Manager of the hotel.  Otherwise, our officers did not talk to any other person.

“The story that customs officers were harassing people and waking hotel guests up to go out and identify their cars was not true.  We had nothing to do with guests.  It was a neatly performed operation.  That story was the handiwork of some people who don’t want customs to do its work.”

He added that those circulating false reports about the operations were trying to discredit the organisation and paint it in a bad light.

The Customs spokesman disclosed that the operations to identify smuggled vehicles were on-going and that NCS went to the hotel because it received intelligence that some of such cars on which duties were not paid were moved from car marts to hotels and other facilities, to avoid NCS operatives.

A top official of the hotel who did not want his name mentioned said that he was at the premises of the hotel throughout the night and was surprised when he saw the stories that were trending in the social media, which according to him did not represent what transpired.

Vanguard observed that an NCS operational vehicle was stationed at the Northern fringe of the hotel with some armed Customs operatives and hotel staff examining some papers, ostensibly car documents.

As learnt, the operations by the NCS which has led to the closure of some car marts in Lagos would be extended to other parts of the country, to ensure compliance with required customs duty paid by dealers.

Happening Now:Customs Officers just invaded Fraser Suites in Abuja, preventing foreign diplomats & guests lodged in the hotel from coming in or going out.They are harassing & ordering the staff to wake guests up from sleep to identify their cars & show Customs duty. This is bad! pic.twitter.com/oiF22KdHvy

— Mazi (@matthewamad) October 3, 2019

Details later…

Vanguard