By Sylvanus Viashima, Jalingo
The Operation Whirlwind unit of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) in an intensified fight against fuel smuggling, has smashed a cartel of smugglers of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) in Kan-Iyaka border communities of Sardauna local government area of Taraba State.
The Comptroller General of the NCS Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, who disclosed this in Jalingo revealed that a total of 34,470 liters of petrol and a special-purpose transportation truck used for smuggling were confiscated from smugglers in an intelligence based operation that lasted barely Three hours.
Adeniyi 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 8-9, 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.”
The Comptroller General further stated that the investigation of the smuggling network has revealed several methodologies that demand attention.
“Terrain-adaptive distribution systems that fragment shipments into multiple micro-consignments, each following distinct routes that converge at collection points beyond conventional enforcement coverage. Again community-embedded infrastructure utilizing repurposed agricultural facilities and private residences as temporary storage nodes in a distributed logistics network.
“Counter-intelligence capabilities employing local observers, digital communications, and environmental triggers to create an early warning system against enforcement operations. Temporal pattern exploitation that aligns movement schedules with environmental conditions, community activities, and administrative rhythms to minimize detection probability.
“These findings have prompted a fundamental recalibration of our operational approach. We are at the verge of initiating a pilot program to integrate advanced analytics with community partnership frameworks unique to the northeastern frontier context. Our field teams will now be equipped with enhanced digital capabilities that enable real-time threat assessment and adaptive response planning despite the challenging topography and distributed nature of these smuggling networks,” he stated.