Owombo Segun John, an officer of the Nigerian Customs Service (NCS) who raised the alarm on how refined petroleum products, especially the Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), otherwise called petrol, is being smuggled to Cameroon, Chad and Niger Republic and other African countries has remained in detention.
Owombo, a Superintendent of Customs (SC) in a video had narrated how he arrested so many smugglers on Wednesday, November 2, at Malabo Checkpoint on Belel Road, Adamawa state.
He however said senior officials of the NCS called him to release the suspects. In November 2022, SaharaReporters reported how Owombo was transported to Abuja from Adamawa State to meet with the Comptroller General of Customs while in detention.
SaharaReporters had also reported that Owombo was set to undergo certain tests while in detention. According to the results of tests performed at Karu General Hospital in Abuja and obtained by SaharaReporters, Owombo is suffering from a kidney disease that could worsen if not treated immediately.
Another source in the agency on Friday told SaharaReporters that the officer has been kept in open detention since his arrest to ensure media silence over his matter. The source added that Owombo was also issued a query last week for allegedly exposing “to the public the secrecy of the public service.”
