Following the killings of two operatives by suspected smugglers, residents of Fagbohun village in Yewa South Local Government Area of Ogun State, have reportedly fled their homes over fear of reprisal attack.
Tribune Online recalled that the officers were killed when the operatives of the Nigeria Customs Service invaded the village for operation.
Information had it that some NCS officials stormed the village and set some houses, motorcycles on fire.
Speaking with newsmen, the village head of the Fagbohun community, Chief Simeon Fagbohun, said that many villagers fled for safety when the customs operatives invaded the village.
He hinted that no fewer than seven motorcycles and four houses were burnt by the customs officers while claiming that the slain officers were not killed by his people
He said the killing of the officers occurred in Iya Sango, a village he said is about 5km away from Fagbohun village.
“I am here to clear some misinformation that I have read in the social media about our community, about the death of some customs officers in that area.
“It is not in Fagbohun village the customs officers were killed, it is in Iya Sango village that they killed them but, the village is now defunct, it is the Ohori people that now stay in Iya Sango, they make little settlements there and are doing farming.
“The village is in Yewaland, it is about 5km to Fagbohun village, the place they killed the customs officers is not Fagbohun, it is Iya Sango village.
“This Iya Sango village is in Yewaland, but Fagbohun is a village these smugglers used to pass, it is the biggest village in that axis, which has vulcanizers and schools.
“Those smugglers have a stopover in our village to fix their tyres and also to eat. They stopped in a place called Eti Odo in Fagbohun village.
“Custom Officer came to our place on the 26th of this month (October), myself and my senior brother named Johnson Olarinde Fagbohun departed from Ilaro, I stayed in Ilaro while he went to the village, at around 7 pm he called that he has been arrested by some customs officers and they were taking him and others to an unknown destination, I was marvelled and surprised by what he told me when I asked what for, he told me that they told him that some smugglers killed custom officers.
“We saw that they have burnt the house of Adeoye Fagbohun, one of the sons of Fagbohun family, he is an elder brother to me, they burnt his house with three motorcycles also, he is the one doing vulcanizing in the junction of the village where his house was, his vulcanizing machine was also burnt inside the house.
“Iya Alate’s house was also burnt, we all saw it with the Police, there were three motorcycles in that house also, the house of Nathaniel was also burnt with one motorcycle, we now saw that the remaining houses like that of the Akao family in the village, they entered the house and brought out the motorcycles in the house and burnt them, three motorcycles were burnt there also, Odunaro house, their house was not burnt but they took the motorcycles owned by people in the house and they burnt it outside the house as well, the house of the Ogundipe’s they didn’t burn their house but they brought out motorcycles from the house as well and burnt them.
“They burnt three motorcycles as well, I also saw that they went into my own palace too, they looted my palace, they didn’t burn motorcycles in front of my house but I can’t find two motorcycles in my house, also our pumping machine, the farmers in the village bought, we want to use it for irrigation in the dry season, five pumping machines, they removed them from the cartons and we can’t find them also, the machine we used to spray herbicides and other chemicals on the farm, seven of them have been taken, about 20 cartons of them are also missing, all my doors were forced opened”.
When contacted, the Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the Federal Operating Unit (FOU), zone A, Ikeja, Lagos, Theophilus Duniya denied the allegation, saying despite the losses recorded by the customs, the operatives did not take the law into their hands.
Duniya said, seven suspects were arrested with Dane guns and machetes and had been put in custody as murder suspects.
He said “The incident that happened last week, some people were arrested in connection with murder as murder suspects.
“Then, the issue of burning houses, motorcycles and what have you, as a law enforcement agency, despite the fact that our operatives were murdered in the manner it happened, we cannot take the law into our hands.
“In as much as we seek to have justice for the slain officers, we cannot take the laws into our hands by destroying people’s property. So, what his claims are, were not executed by our operatives.
“Operatives of Customs service never burn anybody’s house, never burnt any motorcycle, the only thing I know on authority that was done was the arrest of gun suspects that are in custody.
“We have seven people in custody, some of them were arrested with Dane guns and machetes and they are really helping in our investigation.
“And the arson or whatever form of destruction that was carried out in that village was done by mischief makers to tarnish the image of the service and our operatives. As I speak with you one riffle is still missing.”
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