The Northcentral Zone of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) yesterday said it has seized contraband goods worth N1.2 billion from May till date.

The zone comprises Kwara, Kogi, Niger and Benue states.

The service also said it has arrested no fewer than 53 suspects allegedly involved in smuggling of contraband goods.

Coordinator, Joint Border Drill Operations of the zone Comptoller Mohammed Garba told reporters in Ilorin, the Kwara State capital, adding that the operations had recorded 225 seizures in the period under review.

The seizures, according to him, include 17,490 bags of par boiled rice, 310 kegs of vegetable oil, locally made pistol with a live cartridge; 944 drums of AGO, 3,676 jerry-cans of petroleum products, 355 bundles of textile materials, 28 bags of foreign fertiliser, 66 cartons of different brands of beer and 67 units of vehicles.

Others are 78 motor cycles and one Keke NAPEP; 15 sacks of used shoes and 360 tubers of yam.

He said: “One of the most exceptional seizures is the interception of a Tipper truck with registration number ZAR803 XA; contained in the truck is carefully concealed 140 bags of foreign rice and covered with sharp sand. It is disturbing that some diehard smugglers have also resorted to using of Keke NAPEP to smuggle rice.

“In the period under review, a patrol team raided two warehouses at Abayawo and Ita-Merin areas of Ilorin suspected to have been sock-piled with foreign par boiled rice.

The stores were raided and a total of 450 and 224 bags of foreign parboiled rice of 50 kilogrammes each were discovered to be smuggled into the state.

“Last month, the patrol team covering Banana axis of the sector in Niger state intercepted two Mitsubishi Canter with registration number XA241WEL and XC166SUL laden with 54 drums of smuggled petrol with a duty paid value (DPV) of N1.9 million with two suspects.”