By By Scott Tuttle Nov 28, 2013 in World Kano - In a campaign to enforce a law in place since 2001, police in the north Nigerian city of Kano confiscated 240,000 bottles of beer on Wednesday which was taken to a landfill and destroyed. Hisbah, the patrol unit that enforces Sharia law, had been collecting alcohol and cigarettes from incoming trucks over the past few weeks until its total stockpile grew to an impressive 240,000 bottles of beer, 8,000 liters of a local alcoholic beverage called burukutu, and 340,000 cigarettes. Before a large crowd cheering "Allah Ahkbar," (God is great) a large bulldozer destroyed the cache of seized products on Wednesday. "We hope this measure will help restore the tarnished image of Kano. ...We hereby send warning to unrepentant offenders that Hisbah personnel will soon embark on an operation into every nook and corner of (Kano) state to put an end to the sale and consumption of alcohol and all other intoxicants," said The Hisbah police force works in conjunction with the regular police in Kano. They share many similar law enforcement duties, but the Hisbah are also involved in community services, development work, and dispute resolution. They generally focus their investigations on what Islamic law deems as immoral behavior rather than ordinary crimes. According to First and second offenders arrested by the Hisbah are typically given counseling, and repeat offenders are more often given fines and/or jail sentences. The Hisbah operates in multiple states in the north of Nigeria where most of the country's Muslim population lives. They are approximately 9,000 officers strong. Kano is the regional capital of the state bearing the same name in the northern, predominantly Muslim half of Nigeria. According to Associated Press , Sharia law was introduced to nine of Nigeria's 37 states back in 2001, but had been lightly enforced until recently when the state government passed a directive calling for stricter implementation.Hisbah, the patrol unit that enforces Sharia law, had been collecting alcohol and cigarettes from incoming trucks over the past few weeks until its total stockpile grew to an impressive 240,000 bottles of beer, 8,000 liters of a local alcoholic beverage called burukutu, and 340,000 cigarettes.Before a large crowd cheering "Allah Ahkbar," (God is great) a large bulldozer destroyed the cache of seized products on Wednesday."We hope this measure will help restore the tarnished image of Kano. ...We hereby send warning to unrepentant offenders that Hisbah personnel will soon embark on an operation into every nook and corner of (Kano) state to put an end to the sale and consumption of alcohol and all other intoxicants," said Aminu Daurawa , chief of Kano's Hisbah unit.The Hisbah police force works in conjunction with the regular police in Kano. They share many similar law enforcement duties, but the Hisbah are also involved in community services, development work, and dispute resolution. They generally focus their investigations on what Islamic law deems as immoral behavior rather than ordinary crimes.According to Mohammed Yusuf Yola , a spokesman for Hisbah, “Those arrested include Muslims and non-Muslims and we treat them equally because this is about morality.”First and second offenders arrested by the Hisbah are typically given counseling, and repeat offenders are more often given fines and/or jail sentences.The Hisbah operates in multiple states in the north of Nigeria where most of the country's Muslim population lives. They are approximately 9,000 officers strong. More about Nigeria, Beer, Sharia law, Police, Islam More news from Nigeria Beer Sharia law Police Islam