I paid DSS men, others N1m to bring in 661 Rifles - Suspect
Director-General of Department of State Service, DSS, Mr Lawal Daura Mamudu, a retired Assistant Comptroller of Customs, stated this in a recorded video during his interrogation by men of the DSS. The video, recorded on March 27, 2017, between the hours of 2p.m., and 2.45p.m., was tendered by an operative of DSS, Jaiye Emmanuel at the resumed trial-within-trial, as Mamudu gave a breakdown of how the N1 million was shared among DSS and other security agencies.
He said: “I gave N1 million to facilitate the
moving of the container out of port, but it is not because of the guns.” When
Mamudu was asked how the N1 million was shared among security agencies, he
said: “The examiners were given N200,000; C.I.O. N100,000; Enforcement
N200,000; Police, SSS — between N20, 000, N25, 000, and N30, 000; the two gates
— N200,000; Exit gate, N20,000, and final gate N50,000.” Mamudu also told the
investigators in the video that he first agreed with the importer of the guns
for N3.8 million, when he was first told that the consignments were steel
doors, but raised the cost of clearing the consignment to N4 million, when he
was told that the consignment included 661 pump action guns.
The video
recording was admitted in evidence, while further hearing continues today. It
will be recalled that the Nigeria Customs Service had on June 14, 2017,
arraigned two Customs officers, Mamudu
Hassan and Salisu Danjuma, alongside Oscar Orkafor, Donatus Achinulo and Matthew Okoye, before Justice
Ayotunde Faji on charges of illegal importation of fire arms, conspiracy,
forgery and altering of documents, offering of graft to government officials
and importation of prohibited goods.
They were arrested January 30, 2017. The
offences, according to the prosecutor, Mr. Julius Ajakaiye, are contrary to and punishable under Sections
3(6),1(14)(a)(I) 1(2) of the Miscellaneous Offences Act, Cap. M17, Laws of the
Federation of Nigeria, 2004, and Section 98(1) (b) of the Criminal Code Act.
Attorney-General of the Federation, AGF in charge number FHC/L/190c/17, alleged
that all the accused persons conspired
with one another to illegally import into Nigeria 661 Pump Action Rifles.
Vanguard
Comments
Post a Comment