By Ogalah Ibrahim
A serving officer of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has been laid to rest in Katsina State, amid speculations about the circumstances surrounding his death.
The Katsina Area Command of the Service confirmed the officer’s death but declined to comment on reports circulating online, saying it had not received official details about how or where the incident occurred.
The Public Relations Officer of the Command, ASC II B. Musa, who spoke to Vanguard by telephone, said the Command was only informed of the development by the deceased officer’s family.
“All I know is that the officer died. We were only informed by his family. So, about his whereabouts and where he died — we were not told,” Musa said.
When asked if the family disclosed the cause of death, he added: “I don’t know. They didn’t tell us.”
Musa also said he could not confirm claims that the officer’s remains were taken to a hospital before burial.
“I don’t know about that one,” he said. He, however, confirmed that the deceased had been buried in accordance with Islamic rites.
“We just received the information that our officer died and was buried. That is all I know,” he added.
Some unverified reports circulating on social media had linked the death to events that allegedly occurred in a hotel within Katsina metropolis. However, Vanguard could not independently verify these claims as of press time, and the Nigeria Customs Service Headquarters has not issued any official statement regarding the matter.
The identity of the officer, as gathered from unofficial sources, was given as Assistant Superintendent of Customs (ASC) Lawal Tukur, though the Service has not confirmed this.
At the time of filing this report, investigations into the circumstances surrounding the officer’s death had not been made public.
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