The International Police, INTERPOL, Abuja is investigating the disappearance of goods worth N24 million, packaged to be shipped from Birmingham, United Kingdom to Nigeria.
“Consequently, a UK-based Nigerian businessman and representative of a shipping company in the UK (names withheld), was arrested but later released while on a visit to Nigeria, over his alleged involvement in the missing goods.“Sunday Vanguard gathered that the indicted company, as contacted by another Nigerian businessman to ship three heavy duty power generating sets and other items to Nigeria, three months ago.“
“The representative of the shipping firm was said to have sent an empty 40-foot container to the premises of Eagle Generators Limited, where the power generating sets were purchased in the UK, for onward journey to Nigeria at the sea port.“However, apprehension set it , following a report of the disappearance of the heavy duty power generating sets.“While the owner of the goods claimed that they were loaded into the container brought by the representative of the shipping company, the latter claimed the empty container was abandoned at the premises of the company where it was purchased, following the failure to load the goods into it.“Speaking with Sunday Vanguard, the distraught owner of the three goods, Olowodola , explained that: “The three heavy duty generators as well as other items were actually loaded into the container by the representative of the shipping company and the staff of Eagle Generators Limited, which was witnessed by my humble self and one of my children.“
“For avoidance of doubt and in accordance with cargo movement regulations, a fine is placed on any customer that extends beyond an agreed hour of loading. The shipping company’s representative made it clear between himself and and the seller who provided the equipment for loading that his company was going to be paid 55 Pounds for every extra hour spent in the process of loading outside the agreed number of hours. ““The shipping company’s representative’s trailer driver had been visibly agitated immediately he got to the point of loading because, according to him, he had been overworked and had worked till 3 a.m. of the previous day “.
““The shipping company’s representative informed everyone present that we had up till 6.30pm to complete the loading of the container. But to the amazement of all, by 6.11pm, the driver had removed the cabin of the loaded container and driven off the premises without waiting till 6.30pm bench mark set for the exercise.“”It was more startling that the removal before the agreed time between the shipping company’s representative and his driver was not protested by him at all .
This act“suggested a suspected connivance between the driver and the shipping firm’s representative.““All entreaties by the seller and his assistants to persuade the driver from removing the cabin of the loaded truck and driving it away without the container proved abortive .““”As there was nothing nothing we could do since the container was loaded and sealed before the agreed 6:30 pm ,we left the loaded container,already on the flat bed, in the premises of the seller, since the shipping company’s representative assured that his driver was coming back the following morning by 8:00 am to pick up the loaded container to the seaport .“
“But by 2:00pm the following day (August 16, 2016), the shipping company’s representative called me on phone to say the loaded container had been stolen.““Germane to my suspicion also was that, on the morning of August 16 when the disappearance of the fully loaded container was detected, at our arrival (the shipping firm’s representative and Olowodola) we were told by Mr David, a staffer of the company that sold the generators, that agents of the shipping company had come earlier that day and made away with all the fragments of the broken seal used in securing the loaded container.“”The shipping firm’s rep said that the truck we left behind was an empty container but I have pictorial evidence of when they were being loaded into the container. When I requested that the rep should submit his company’s insurance details, he refused. I also requested that he should take us to the company he rented the truck and container from, yet he refused, saying I had no business with the company but with him.“
“Inspite of this great challenge, he told me that he was traveling to Dubai for a business meeting few days after the incident and from Dubai to Nigeria where he was going to remain for six weeks, hence leaving me in the cold. He truly left me in UK about the fifth day to sort myself out without any feeling of concern as to how to unravel this great mystery of the disappearance of a 40ft fully loaded container. The shipping company’s representative should tell the world what happened to my goods already delivered to him, in the container he provided”. “He appealed to the INTERPOL not to allow itself to be blackmailed into shying away from investigating the matter.“
However, the shipping firm’s representative accused the INTERPOL of meddling in a case that was being investigated by the police in the UK.“In his petition to the Inspector-General of Police , Ibrahim Idris , through HURMA, he stated that the matter was being handled by policemen at the Birmingham Police Station under reference number 205W158583E16.“The petition read in part: “ Eagle Generators Limited failed to load the generators into the container between the hours of 11.30a.m. and 1.30pm as agreed and this necessitated the driver of the truck to leave the empty container behind so that it could be loaded at the seller’s convenient time and that the truck would return the following morning to take it to to port. “
“ However when the driver returned to Eagle Generators Limited the following day, he found out that the container was missing. Owner of the firm, Nasir, reported the matter to Birmingham Police Station”. “He stated that while on a visit to Nigeria for his father’s burial, he was arrested by men of the INTERPOL who were invited by owner of the missing goods, Olowodola, who was at the same time in Nigeria.“The shipping company’s representative further alleged that his traveling documents were seized by the police, wondering why the case could not be transferred to the place of commitment for discreet investigation. “”When contacted,
Commissioner of Police, INTERPOL, Abuja ,Mr Olusola Subair, admitted that the shipping company’s representative’s passport was seized, but he assured that it would be released immediately they got a response from INTERPOL Manchester , which oversees England, on whether the case was reported at Birmingham or Stafford station as stated by the shipping company’s representative.
