Ebola: Customs intercept truckload of dried bush meat smuggled into Nigeria

A truckload of dried bush meat suspected to be monkey meat smuggled into the country by yet to be identified persons have been intercepted by operatives of Kaduna and Katsina command of the Nigerian Custom Service.

The truck, according to the Customs Comptroller of Federal Operations Unit (FOU, Zone B), Maina Tijjani Suleiman, contained 351 bags of bush meat and that each of the bags weighed 100Kg.

It was intercepted Thursday morning at the Katsina border. The seized meat was set ablaze by the customs men.

Speaking after the destruction exercise, Suleiman said that the seized meat may have come from Libya.

He said the seizure was necessary in the light of measures of controlling the dreaded Ebola disease which can also be contracted from bush meat.

According to him, had the meat found its way into the market, “only God will tell the extent of damage it may cause".

He said further: “The driver abandoned the vehicle and ran away after he was chased by our men. But then, some hoodlums attempted to attack our men and it took the reinforcement of operatives before the truck was retrieved.”