The Nigeria Customs Service has confirmed another violent confrontation involving its operatives in Ogun State, marking the second such incident within a week.
The development comes shortly after an earlier clash in Imeko-Afon Local Government Area, where two Customs personnel were left critically injured.
According to the Service, the latest incident occurred at about 6:00 a.m. on Saturday, January 31, 2026, when officers of the Ogun I Area Command were conducting a routine anti-smuggling patrol along a bush path in Alapoti, Ado-Odo/Ota Local Government Area.
In a statement released by the command’s Public Relations Officer, Deputy Superintendent of Customs Zakari Chado, the patrol team intercepted several motorcycles transporting smuggled foreign parboiled rice during the operation.
The officers reportedly seized 46 bags of 50-kilogramme foreign parboiled rice, which were immediately loaded into an official patrol vehicle for evacuation.
Tension escalated shortly after the seizure as the operatives attempted to exit the area.
The statement disclosed that a large group of individuals, armed with Dane guns, stones, bottles and suspected charms, ambushed the patrol team in what appeared to be an attempt to recover the seized items.
Customs officers were said to have stood their ground and successfully repelled the attackers following a fierce confrontation that lasted about 30 minutes.
During the clash, one of the attackers sustained injuries and later died, while a suspect who claimed ownership of the seized rice was arrested and taken into custody for further investigation.
The command linked the repeated attacks on its personnel to sustained enforcement operations against smuggling activities in the area, which have resulted in frequent seizures of prohibited goods.
It described the assaults as deliberate actions by criminal networks aimed at frustrating lawful enforcement efforts and undermining national security.
Reacting to the incident, the Acting Customs Area Controller, Deputy Comptroller Olukayode Afeni, condemned the attack, describing it as a direct challenge to the rule of law.
He maintained that acts of violence would not deter the Service from performing its statutory responsibilities, while reaffirming the command’s commitment to safeguarding lives, securing communities and enforcing the provisions of the Nigeria Customs Service Act, 2023.
