Suspected militants on
Wednesday attacked officials of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) at a
hotel, Aridolf Resort Wellness & Spa, owned by former first lady Patience
Jonathan, in Yenagoa, Bayelsa state.
It was gathered that the FIRS
team went to the hotel in respect of tax liabilities totaling N10,117,500, but
were attacked by the hoodlums suspected to be loyal to Dame Patience.
According to reports, the FIRS
team arrived Aridolf, demanded to see the most senior staff of the hotel but
without success.
The team, however, read the
warrant of distraint to the hotel officials at the reception, as militants,
believed to have lodged in the hotel, came out and threatened to kill the
officials, claiming that the enforcement exercise was illegal.
“We demanded that they should
phone the manager to inform him of the team’s presence and mission, but they
ignored the demand,” a FIRS official said.
“The FIRS team, however, read
the warrant of distraint to them… After over 30 minutes of argument, militants
believed to have lodged in the hotel came out and threatened to kill FIRS
officials, claiming that the enforcement exercise was illegal.
“When one of the directors of
the hotel, Mr. Victor, arrived the scene, we showed him the warrant of
distraint and told him that the hotel owed three months VAT.”
The official said a man, who
identified himself as Chief Anthony, arrived and threatened some of FIRS
officials would be shot. He said the warrant was not properly signed since it
did not carry the seal of the agency’s chairman, Babatunde Fowler.
“He claimed that the visit was
a plot to ridicule Mrs. Jonathan, and that the Economic and Financial Crimes
Commission, EFCC, sent FIRS officials to plant cash in the premises.”
“Anthony ordered the militants
not to allow them leave the premises until ‘Mummy’ comes.
“He ordered them to arrest the
team leader and some other officials. The armed militants forced the FIRS
officials to remove the seal already placed at entrance of the hotel’s salon
and gym as well as to unlock the hotel entrance.”
The Eagle Online reports that
the militants forced the team leader, a newspaper reporter and an NTA camera
man that accompanied the team into a room, where they were beaten up.
Their phones were also seized
and images on them deleted. They also deleted items stored in the camera
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