FRSC: Driver Jailed One Month As 15 Passengers, Eight Motorcycles Found Hidden Under Truck Cover

By Chibuzo Obidike

The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) has intensified its crackdown on dangerous road practices after its operatives uncovered 15 passengers and eight motorcycles concealed under the cover of a Mitsubishi Canter truck in Nyanya, Federal Capital Territory.

The vehicle, with registration number GDD 815 ZP, was intercepted after FRSC marshals became suspicious of the sealed trampoline covering the vehicle. A closer inspection revealed the passengers and motorcycles dangerously packed beneath the cover.

The driver, identified as Umar Muhammadu, was arrested after he allegedly attempted to induce an FRSC marshal with N500 and could not produce a valid driver’s licence. The vehicle and occupants were handed over to the police for further investigation and prosecution.

In a separate incident in Abia State, a Mobile Court sitting in Afara sentenced Azubuike Dominic to one month imprisonment at Afara Correctional Centre for driving a commercial Toyota Hiace without a valid driver’s licence.

The driver had also reportedly absconded with an FRSC arresting marshal while being escorted to court but was later reapprehended several kilometres away following a coordinated pursuit involving FRSC personnel and the military.

The FRSC said the incidents demonstrate its growing reliance on intelligence driven enforcement and inter agency collaboration to detect dangerous practices on Nigerian roads.

The Corps warned commercial drivers and other motorists against overloading, concealing passengers, driving without valid licences, evading arrest and attempting to bribe enforcement personnel.

The Corps Marshal, Shehu Mohammed, urged motorists to comply with road safety regulations, stressing that there would be “no hiding place for reckless and dangerous driving.”