Customs officer remanded over disappearance of 40ft container

*Dawodu Olatoni


(Nigeria) A serving Assistant Superintendent of Customs, Dawodu Olatoni, has been remanded in Kirikiri prison, Lagos  in connection with the alleged  disappearance of a 40ft container belonging to a business woman, in Lagos.

The suspect, attached to the Federal Operations Unit, Abuja, reportedly collected N1.025millon from the business woman, Mrs Mary Omo Ojo, in 2012,  to a clear  the container  in which were four cars and  other goods.

Trouble, however, started following Olatoni's inability to deliver the container to the apprehensive woman, as he claimed that it had been auctioned by the Customs.

Speaking, Omo Ojo, who said she suspected foul play,  added “We brought in two containers in November 2012,  which he was supposed to help us clear. We paid him N1.025m. My brother in the United States of America later  sent  telex of one of the containers through the Customs officer's email to facilitate the clearance.   I waited patiently through out November and December, 2012, without any sign of the container as promised by him.

“On January 3, 2013,  he called me to come and pick my container but said that it had  attracted  N700, 000 demurrage . But when I saw some of the documents, I discovered that payment for the release of the container was done January 2, whereas the money was paid to him in November 2012.  It was also discovered that he had concluded everything about its release and every necessary payment but my container was no where in sight.

“First, I reported to the Police in August 2013, he was invited but later released. The Police then told me that they needed the consent of the Inspector-General of Police on whether to take the case to court or not, this was because a retired IG intervened.

“Infuriated by the reply, I went to the then Controller General of  Customs office in Abuja, to lodge my complaint . But some  Customs officers  pleaded with me not to take such action. At the end of the day, he (Olatoni) wrote an undertaking to pay me N 8million; N4 million in September and the balance the next month, but he never lived up to his promise.”

On his part, the suspect, stated that Omo Ojo was not the owner of the container, adding that the bill of laden on the container did not bore her name.

He clarified that he only assisted the complainant's younger brother, who he claimed was his friend to get an agent that would assist him clear his goods.

Asked what happened to the container, Olatoni, said “Due to the fact that they did not have the original bill of laden, it led to the container being delayed.  Nobody can collect a container from a shipping company without the original bill of laden. So, the container entered demurrage. I informed her about  the situation and told her to go look for money. She said she was going to meet her aunt in Benin, but came with a bounced cheque. She said she was going back to get another cheque, only to return six months later. By then the Customs had gazetted the container.

“I have the document that the container had been released from the Customs. The reason why it entered auction was because it had exceeded the mandatory 90 days of clearance. She went to my office in Abuja, where they showed her all the documents that the container was auctioned by the office.”

Asked why he wrote an undertaking twice to refund the money estimated for the goods inside the container to  the complaint, Olatoni said that he had refunded the amount paid by the owner of the goods  to the complainant, adding that he was coerced by the complaint and his colleagues to write the second undertaking because of threat  on his job.

However, Vanguard   gathered that when the alleged biased role played by the police reached the  Inspector-General of Police, Ibrahim  Idris, he directed the X-Squad of the Lagos State Police Command to revisit the case and take necessary action.

Consequently, the Police charged Olatoni  before an  Ikeja Magistrate Court  on Tuesday, on a two-count charge of collecting money under false pretense and stealing. However, the defendant pleaded not guilty to the charge.

Magistrate Y. Aje-Afunwa therefore, granted the defendant bail of N2 million with in like sum.

He was however, remanded at Kirikiri prison, until he is able to meet the bail condition, while the case was adjourned to December 12, 2016