The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has recorded a major enforcement success at the Tincan Island Port Command in Lagos, seizing concealed pump-action rifle parts and cannabis-infused products with a duty paid value of N373.8 million.
The Comptroller-General of Customs, Bashir Adeniyi, told newsmen at the Tincan Command that the seizures were a demonstration of the intelligence-led strategy of the Service in fighting smuggling and other transnational crimes.
Adeniyi said one of the intercepted containers, TEMU 184536/9, had arrived Tincan Port on July 8 on board a vessel, MV VELIKA.
“The container triggered the Customs risk management system and was soon under close surveillance,” he said.
“A physical examination done at the Customs Enforcement Station revealed hidden wooden crates with knocked-down parts for JoJeff pump-action rifles,” he said.
“The recovered parts of the firearm are undergoing detailed technical assessment and inventory to determine the exact quantity and specifications,” the Comptroller-General said.
The investigation of the consignment led to the arrest of a suspect on July 31, 2026 at the Migfo Bonded Terminal while he was allegedly trying to facilitate the release of the container, he said.
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Preliminary investigations, he said, showed documentary, financial and telecommunications evidence connecting the suspect to the consignee mentioned in the import documents.
Evidence included a N10,000 transfer from a company account associated with the consignee on the day of the arrest.
Adeniyi said two suspects were in custody while another principal suspect was on the run and being tracked by security operatives.
In a separate operation, Customs officers seized two 40-foot containers of cannabis-infused products hidden among other imported products.
The goods were concealed using two used vehicles, two used pumping generators, polypropylene spunbond fabric, tubular batteries and thunder arrester cables.
“Recovered from the containers were 109 cartons of Delta-8 cannabis infused pre-roll cookies, 125 cartons of Delta-8 cannabis infused gummies and 73 cartons of cannabis infused cookies,” he said.
The Customs Service put the total street value of the seized cannabis products at N373,802,640.
Adeniyi said the seizures highlight the increasing sophistication of criminal networks which use legitimate trade channels to smuggle weapons and illicit drugs into the country.
He assured that all those involved in the illegal shipments would be identified, apprehended and prosecuted as prescribed by law.
The Comptroller-General praised officers and men of the Tincan Island Port Command and the Customs Enforcement Unit for their vigilance and professionalism, insisting that the Service remains dedicated to securing Nigeria’s borders while facilitating legitimate trade.
