The Nigeria Customs Service, NCS, has intercepted narcotics, controlled pharmaceuticals, drones and expired goods valued at N43.5 billion at the Apapa Port in Lagos.
The Comptroller-General of Customs, Bashir Adeniyi, disclosed this on Wednesday while handing over the intercepted consignments to relevant government agencies. The narcotics were handed over to the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, while illicit and expired drugs were handed to the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control, NAFDAC.
Adeniyi said the seizures underscored the Customs Service’s role beyond revenue collection, stressing its responsibility for supply chain security, border protection and the safety of imports.
He said criminals were increasingly concealing narcotics, restricted equipment and expired goods within legitimate consignments through false declarations and the use of agents and syndicates operating at the ports.
He listed concealment methods including narcotics hidden inside vehicles, drugs concealed beneath household goods, and restricted equipment falsely declared as ordinary electronics to evade detection.
The CGC said the service had, over the past three years, strengthened its cargo-targeting capacity through profiling, risk assessment and the Producer platform, which integrates trade data across Customs commands nationwide. He added that in July 2026, Customs established an INTERPOL Data Centre in Abuja, giving Nigeria access to more than 152 international security databases.
Adeniyi said strengthened collaboration with the NDLEA through a Memorandum of Understanding, the Office of the National Security Adviser and international partners had enhanced intelligence-led operations.
He said Customs intercepted 11 containers holding three broad categories of prohibited and restricted items. The first comprised 15,245 parcels of cannabis sativa weighing 7,624kg in three containers, alongside 169,998 bottles of codeine syrup concealed in household items. The second category involved 100 high-definition dual-camera drones imported without the required approvals.
