There persons have been reported dead following a clash between Customs personnel from Federal Operations Unit (FOU), Zone A, and smugglers in Igbo Ora town in Oyo State, on Thursday, November 19, 2020.
According to an eyewitness, who craved anonymity, trouble started when some Customs operatives and soldiers intercepted a vehicle transporting bags of foreign rice.
But other suspected smugglers clashed with the law enforcement agents, in their bid to take the intercepted vehicle back.
Reporters At Large learnt from the eyewitness that after an exchange of gunfire between the Customs operatives and the smugglers, three persons, including two Customs personnel and a soldier, died.
Another source, however, said only one Customs personnel and a resident of the area died.
Many people had rumored that the Customs operatives involved were from Oyo/Osun Area Command, but findings revealed that they were from Federal Operations Unit of Zone A.
When contacted, the Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the Oyo/Osun Area Command of the Nigeria Customs Service, Kayode Wey, confirmed that the Command knew nothing about the clash.
“All I can tell you is that Oyo/Osun Area Command had no officers among those who were in Igboora,” Wey stated.
