Customs: How Smugglers Mobilized Themself, Contributed N50 Million to Bribe Me – Fisayo Soyombo

Investigative journalist Fisayo Soyombo has disclosed several attempts by smugglers and Customs operatives to bribe him into halting his reports on smuggling activities in Nigeria.

In a public statement, Soyombo revealed that since February, three separate bribe attempts have been made to silence his work, including an offer of N50 million.

He emphasized that he rejected all offers without hesitation, reiterating his commitment to exposing smuggling’s impact on national security and the economy.

Since February when I started writing about smuggling by Customs and by smugglers, there have been three attempts to bribe me.

First was in March and from the camp of ‘The Smuggler’. The offer was “any amount you want”. The go-between was a broadcast journalist. I instantly…— ‘Fisayo Soyombo (@fisayosoyombo) November 15, 2024

According to Soyombo, the first attempt occurred in March when an intermediary, described as a broadcast journalist, approached him with an open-ended offer from “The Smuggler,” promising “any amount you want.”

The second came in April from an individual linked to Customs, proposing an unspecified sum to end his campaign against the agency. In both cases, Soyombo flatly refused.

The third attempt, made last month, involved a N50 million offer from parties who had filed a lawsuit against him but wanted to withdraw it.

Soyombo said he decided to go public after learning from a field source that smugglers had spread false claims that he accepted a N200 million bribe to halt his anti-smuggling advocacy.

He described how smugglers allegedly taxed themselves to raise money as part of a plan to silence him. “If you’re a smuggler and you paid someone to bribe me, you were scammed,” he stated.

The Fisayo Soyombo reaffirmed his unwavering dedication to addressing smuggling issues, asserting that his interest in the topic is driven purely by national security and economic concerns.

He urged anyone who contributed money for a bribe on his behalf to demand a refund, stating firmly that he would never accept such offers in “a thousand lifetimes.”