By Fanen Ihyongo, Kano

The strike force of the Nigeria Customs Service, Kano Command on Tuesday seized contraband goods worth N7.9 million.

The seized items included 410 cartons of Macaroni, 259 bags of foreign parboiled rice, 279 cartons of tomato and 249 cartons of condensed milk, among others.

Deputy Comptroller of Customs, Oseni Olorukoba, said the contraband goods were seized and evacuated at a warehouse along Katsina Road of Kano-Jigawa axis.

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Warning against importation of foreign rice, the deputy comptroller said the federal government has invested billions of naira in Nigerian farmers for the cultivation of local rice.

“We are warning all smugglers and illegal traders. We shall continue to go after them at the borders, in the markets and even warehouses -we have been mandated to do that.

“If they (illegal traders and smugglers) do not stop they will end up wasting their money, after which they will go to jail. Smuggling and illegal trades are prohibited,” Olorukoba said.

Uba Zubairu Yakassai who is the MD/Chairman of Sabon Gari traders union supported customs for all the seizures. He told The Nation that no trader has called him over the matter, meaning the perpetrators know they are guilty of the crime.