The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Federal Operations Unit (FOU), Zone A, has intercepted smuggled items valued at N6.19 billion, including 3.4 tonnes of cannabis and 23,220 machetes, in 4 weeks.
The Acting Comptroller of the unit, Oladapo Afeni, disclosed this on Tuesday in Lagos throughout a information convention, based on a report by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).
Afeni stated the unit recorded 195 seizures of prohibited and restricted items throughout the interval, attributing the interceptions to improved intelligence gathering, surveillance and collaboration with different safety and regulatory companies.
The enforcement companions included the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Nigeria Police Force, Department of State Services (DSS), Nigeria Immigration Service, Nigerian Army, National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), and National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA).
Customs urges Nigerians to report suspicious smuggling actions
Afeni warned that smuggling may thrive when people and establishments tolerate, defend or ignore the actions, stressing that residents even have a accountability to assist efforts to fight the apply.
He urged Nigerians to report suspicious actions and assist lawful commerce, noting that public cooperation was vital in tackling smuggling networks and defending the nation’s financial pursuits.
- “Smuggling thrives where it is tolerated, protected or ignored. Every citizen has a role to play by reporting suspicious activities and supporting lawful trade,” he stated.
The seizures included 5,986 parcels of cannabis sativa and indica weighing 3,407.83 kilogrammes, 400 grammes of cocaine, 100 grammes of methamphetamine and 57 cartons, 37 packs and 6 items of codeine syrup.
- Other intercepted gadgets included 23,220 new machetes, 1,250 rounds of 12-calibre cartridges, 4,334 luggage of imported rice, 173 cartons of frozen poultry merchandise, 6,949 cartons of spaghetti, 1,236 used tyres, 21 foreign-used automobiles and eight,025 litres of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS).
- The unit additionally recovered eight reside pangolins, 459 bales and 39 jumbo sacks of second-hand clothes, 250 cartons of unregistered Lotus sardines, 101 luggage of imported sugar, 20 cartons of couscous, 2,760 knocked-down workplace chairs and different prohibited items.
Afeni stated the unit additionally generated N683.66 million by compliance checks, scrutiny of import declarations, detection of under-valuations and demand notices between September 30 and November 3, 2026.
Nigeria Customs data main contraband seizures in latest months
The newest interceptions add to a sequence of main seizures recorded by the Nigeria Customs Service because it intensifies efforts to sort out smuggling and illicit commerce throughout the nation’s borders.
- In May 2026, the NCS Ogun I Area Command, Idiroko, seized contraband valued at N6.77 billion in a renewed crackdown on smuggling actions alongside the nation’s borders.
- Earlier in February 2026, the Federal Operations Unit (FOU), Zone A, intercepted artificial cannabis and different contraband worth N3.3 billion in Lagos.
The seizures adopted an excellent bigger operation in May 2025, when the Comptroller-General of Customs, Bashir Adeniyi, introduced that the service had intercepted contraband valued at over N921 billion inside 4 months.
Previous Customs drug seizures spotlight scale of illicit commerce
Beyond basic contraband, drug trafficking has remained a recurring focus of Customs enforcement operations, with a number of main interceptions recorded at Nigeria’s borders and ports.
In May 2026, the service recovered cocaine valued at N2.35 billion from a 71-year-old suspect along a major smuggling route.
Similarly, in March 2026, the Apapa Command intercepted 3,398 cartons of codeine syrup valued at N3.39 billion at Apapa Port in Lagos.
The command additionally intercepted 13 containers carrying expired medicine, meals gadgets and restricted safety gear valued at N6.38 billion during the same month.
The newest operation additional highlights the vary of illicit items shifting by Nigeria’s commerce routes, significantly narcotics and restricted merchandise.
