Barely a week after resumption as Customs Area Controller of Seme Border, Comptroller Timi Bomodi has announced the seizure of 69 smuggled birds from smugglers who had moved the birds from Kaduna and attempted smuggling them in Benin Republic
The discovery, according to him , was made while customs operatives at the border were on patrol along Seme – Badagry Expressway, acting on credible intelligence intercepted a luxurious bus enroute from Kaduna to Benin Republic.
Two suspects were arrested in connection with the seizure and six of the birds were reportedly dead, due to poor condition under which they were being moved.
According to the controller, the value of the birds is N6,859,932. Six of them were reported dead due to the trauma of transporting them in poor condition
He said “Upon search of the bus, Fifty-One (51) live Green parrots, Five (5) live African Grey Parrots, Five (5) dead Green Parrots, One (1) dead African Grey Parrot, and One (1) live Hawk in iron nets and a Paper Box were discovered. Six (6) of . Two (2) suspects were also arrested in connection with the seizure.
The said African Parrot Birds have a duty paid value (DPV) of Six Million, Eight Hundred and Fifty-Nine Thousand, Nine Hundred and Thirty-Two Naira (N6,859,932) only.
The Customs Area Controller, Compt. Timi Bomodi condemned this criminal act by some members of the society considering that the trade in endangered wildlife contravenes the Convention on International Trade On Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) which is an International Agreement between Governments of which Nigeria is a signatory
The Comptroller warned the perpetrators of this illegal trade to stay out of the Lagos – Abidjan corridor or they will continue to incur heavy losses if they so insist
In line with the dictates of the Nigeria Customs Service of promoting inter-agency collaboration and synergy, and considering the nature of the item, the seized Parrot Birds will be handed over to the Nigeria Agricultural Quarantine Service (NAQS) Seme Command.
Officials of the f National Park Service will be informed of this seizure as it is their responsibility to rehabilitate and protect them from further harm.
