Pandemonium broke out in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital on Friday, when hoodlums and smugglers held some officers of the Nigeria Customs Service hostage and as well snatched a gun from a female soldier.
It was gathered that the incident happened on Friday night and spread to Saturday after men of Nigeria Customs Service intercepted a truck loaded with smuggled bags of rice at Lafenwa area of Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital.
It was gathered that the crisis started when the smugglers mobilised some hoodlums led by a notorious cultist in the area, popularly known as Abacha .
“men of the Nigeria Customs Service intercepted a truck with smuggled rice. They took the truck to their office, but some officers were still in the area and the hoodlums held them hostage.
“The DPO Lafenwa waded in but the hoodlums insisted that they will free the customs men after the truck which had been taken to the office is released to them.
“In the process, NCS men called for reinforcement of soldiers and they clashed with the hoodlums.
“The hoodlums snatched a gun from a soldier and ran away with it,” a Customs official said.
Public Relations Officer of the NCS, Ogun Command 1, Hammed Oloyede confirmed the incident.
He said while no Customs officer was injured, an operational vehicle was vandalized.
Police Public Relations Officer in the state, Abimbola Oyeyemi, also confirmed the incident.
Oyeyemi, however, said that the gun collected from the soldier had been recovered.
