BY Evelyn Usman
Lagos — The Police have impounded a container load of expired Soy milk worth over N20 million and arrested two persons in the process. The expiry date on the product was reportedly at the verge of being tampered with for onward sale in the market when the bubble burst.

Surprisingly, the product known as Maeil Picnic Soy milk was discovered to have been duly registered by the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control, NAFDAC.

The Soy milk which was produced on December 16, 2004  in Korea, expired on December 15, 2005. Circumstances surrounding its earlier seizure by the Customs Service was unknown.

But the container loaded with over 20,000 packs of Soy milk alongside other seized contraband goods were reportedly taken for possible destruction from the Ikorodu terminal of the Customs Service last week, to Shagamu.

However, the goods were reportedly diverted to a warehouse at Owode Onirin area of Lagos, where plans to tamper with the expiration date for subsequent sale in the Nigerian market was to take place.

But that was never to be as the perpetrators were caught .

Parading the arrested suspects before newsmen yesterday at the command headquarters, Ikeja, the Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, Mr Samuel Jinadu said , “on July 28, 2011 at about 6pm, information was received by the Commissioner of Police escort policemen that a container loaded with expired soy milk was sighted at Owode Onirin water side. Police men swooped in and arrested the agent and ma manger of the company” .

To the astonishment of all, one of the suspects alleged that a Custom official at the Shagamu site directed  that the product be taken to the ware house.

According to the suspect who identified himself as Olalekan Ajbade “ I am a truck agent. A custom agent, Femi Fela who works in Custom terminal Ikorodu  asked me to get a truck  with which to take the milk to Shagamu where they will be destroyed .

Some Custom men even accompanied us to the site . But on reaching Shagamu , seven trucks including mine were turned back. I was directed by a Custom man there to take mine to a warehouse at Owode Onirin owned by one prince Abba”

The suspects and exhibits according to Jinadu would be handed over to NAFDAC for further investigation.