Kaduna car dealers set Customs vehicle ablaze over import duty

 But for the timely intervention of the Kaduna State security outfit, code -named ‘ Operation Yaki ’ , the state capital would have been thrown into another crisis as car dealers and Customs officials clashed on Thursday .

In the melee , the car dealers set ablaze a Customs ’ patrol vehicle .
The incident , which took place along the Rabah Road, in Kaduna North Local Government, occurred at about 3 pm when Customs officials had gone on patrol to impound vehicles without import duties from car dealers in the city .
At about 4 pm, the men of the Kaduna State Fire Service were still battling to put out the fire on the patrol vehicle .
Motorists and other road users as well as passersby scamper for safety while security operatives from the
‘ Operation Yaki ’ outfit cordon off the area .
An eyewitness told our correspondent that the Customs officials had gone to an unnamed car dealer ’ s showroom around the Isa Kaita road area and impounded about six luxury vehicles which they claimed had no import duties .
However , according to the eyewitness , on getting to the showroom , the Customs officials who were few in numbers , sensed there could be danger and decided to go back for reinforcement .
The car dealer , it was learnt , used the opportunity “ to quickly hide some of the vehicles . ”
“ But the Customs officials were able to tow away four of the luxury vehicles , ” he added.
Not done , the Custom officials came back to impound more vehicles , it was at this point , the car dealers mobilised and gave the officials a hot chase .
They (car dealers ) caught up with the patrol vehicle and set it ablaze while onlookers cheered the efforts of the car dealers .
He said , “ The Customs officials had gone to Issa Kaita Road to impound vehicles without import duties from an auto mart . They succeeded in impounding four of the vehicles but came back to tow the remaining two .
“ As they took the remaining two , the car dealers mobilised and gave them a hot chase . Luck ran against the Customs ’ driver as the dealers caught up with him , dragged him down and set the patrol vehicle on fire . ”
When contacted , the spokesman for the Nigerian Customs Headquarters , Abuja , Joseph Attah , confirmed the incident , adding that the owner of the seized vehicles was already in their custody, noting that the law must take its cause .
Attah told our correspondent on the telephone that an innocent driver of the service was returning to the office from the zonal office at Kabala Coustain , in Kaduna when he was attacked by hoodlums who set the Customs patrol van ablaze.