Posted by Samuel on Fri 14th Mar, 2025 - tori.ng
Gembu, the headquarters of Sardauna Local Government Area (LGA), and Kan-Iyaka, a transit route into Cameroon, have become hotbeds for illicit fuel smuggling activities.
The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) Operation Whirlwind unit has ramped up efforts to combat fuel smuggling, resulting in a significant crackdown on petrol (Premium Motor Spirit) smugglers in the border communities of Gembu and Kan-Iyaka, Taraba State.
Gembu, the headquarters of Sardauna Local Government Area (LGA), and Kan-Iyaka, a transit route into Cameroon, have become hotbeds for illicit fuel smuggling activities.
Speaking in Jalingo during a public auction of the seized items, the Comptroller General of the Nigeria Customs Service, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, revealed that a total of 34,470 liters of petrol were confiscated from smugglers in a swift operation.
Added to this was the seizure of a special-purpose transportation truck used for smuggling.
He further explained that the operation was carried out in partnership with the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) and with technical support from the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA).
According to Adeniyi, “Our inter-agency intelligence fusion center identified unusual movement patterns across the Dorofi and Kan-iyaka axis between March 8 and 9, 2025.
“Acting on this intelligence mosaic, field teams executed a series of coordinated interceptions that disrupted what appears to be an emerging smuggling corridor.
“The operational outcomes from these intelligence-led interventions led to seizure of 1,149 jerry cans of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), each containing 30 liters, yielding a total volume of 34,470 liters.
“The seizure, including a sophisticated transportation vehicle valued at Four Million Naira (N4,000,000), represents a total Duty Paid Value of Thirty-Seven Million, Seven Hundred and Eighty Thousand, Six Hundred Naira (N37,780,600).
“The bulk interception occurred in Gembu, which is one of the critical nodal point – while 180 jerry cans and the transportation vehicle were intercepted during active movement toward the Kan-iyaka border crossing.”
Adeniyi also emphasized that smugglers are threats to the nation’s national security and should be of interest to all security agencies.
He urged residents of the state and other stakeholders to cooperate with the government to ensure the gains recorded in the petroleum distribution system for local consumption is not reversed.
He said, “petrol drives the economy and a scarcity of the product could slow down economic activities.”