27th September, 2010
Two suspected touts who specialized in assisting smugglers to pass through the Seme border to cross the border post with their bags to beat the security network at the broder have been arrested by the Republic of Benin gendarmes with a bag containing two locally-made pistols and 21 live ammunitions.
The suspects, Danre Olowokan and Azubuike Chuckwuma were arrested recently at about 9 p.m when they helped an unidentified traveller to cross the border with a bag containing the arms and ammunitions. They were apprehended by the Benninoise gendarmes after they had collected N5,000 for the deal.
The Beninoise security men after preliminary investigations handed them over to the Nigerian Police at the Seme border post from where they were transferred to the Federal Anti robbery squad, FARS office at Adeniji Adele, Lagos Island where they are currently being interrogated.
In his confessional statement to the police, Azubuike Chukwuma reportedly said, “We are touts at the Federal Ministry of Health, Seme border office, we help workers and visitors to the office to buy whatever they need. We also specialized in helping travellers to cross the border with their bags containing prohibited items like local or foreign currency or contraband goods, to beat the security at the border post for N3,000 or N5,000.
“On the day we were arrested, the unidentified owner of the bag with guns lied to us that he had huge sums of money inside the bag and he promised to pay two of us N10,000 after crossing the border into the Republic of Benin.
But before we could deliver the bag to the owner, the Beninonise police operatives arrested us despite the fact that they all know us.
“We were surprised when the bag was searched, the security operatives found two locally-made pistols with 21 live ammunition. We do not know about the guns, we are touts just looking for something to eat. I am begging the police to pardon us, because it is poverty that pushed us into the business. We never rob anybody in our lives.â€
The suspects are still being detained at the FSARS, Adeniji Adele, Lagos.
—Paul Iyoghojie