Adewale Adeniyi, the Comptroller-General of Customs, told reporters in Apapa on Monday that the agency had seized 16 containers that contained weapons and expired medications, among other illegal items.
While displaying the confiscated weapons and contraband to reporters, Adewale made this declaration. The head of NCS said that such imports violate the country’s security and existing regulations.
“It gives me great pleasure to announce today the seizure of sixteen containers of goods whose importation violates our laws and threatens our collective peace and security,” he stated. All of these seizures total more than N10 billion in duty-paid value.
In providing information about the seizure, Adeniyi stated that a 40-foot container with registration number NRSU6407089 was inspected by a team from the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) and Customs.
202 cans of Colorado loud, or Canadian pharmaceuticals, were hidden inside the container after it was first deemed “cleaned,” according to Adeniyi.
“Each can weighs 500 grams, and the total seizure involved is 101 kilograms,” he stated. Nevertheless, the information at our disposal indicates that it involves more than just the medications within the container.
The CAC was instructed to install scanners and scan these containers in response to this advice.
And once this was finished, weapons and ammo were found within the crate. They found 25 rounds of ammo and two pump-action rifles. He also mentioned that a Smith & Wesson handgun containing 55 rounds of ammo, a blank, and many attachments had been found.
Other seizures, he said, include three containers of outdated food, including margarine, three containers of completely forbidden worn apparel, and seven containers of expired pharmaceuticals and prohibited medications.
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The CGC emphasized that a 40-foot container was confiscated as part of an operation the service also initiated over the weekend. 1,290 sacks of frozen poultry goods were also inside. Another 40-foot container, FBIU5507953, also contained 1,290 frozen chicken packs. Adeniyi said, “An importation that has violated intellectual property rights is the subject of another intriguing seizure.
He restated that the container had 305 toothpaste boxes that were hidden inside a Jalabiya garment and beaded. He noted that the NCS’s cooperation with other government agencies in enforcing branch standards is further highlighted by this specific seizure.
The lawsuit included a Nigerian company’s brand being violated.
Both the brand infringement and the fact that these products were not registered by the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control make them susceptible to seizure. He further stated that two additional containers of expired lung and chest medicines that lacked a NAFDAC registration number had been confiscated.
According to him, two 40-foot containers containing codeine were also seized by the service. Also confiscated are these two crates. Adeniyi added, “And the information we had on these containers is connecting the owners to those of the earlier ones that we made.”
“The information that the service is receiving is helping to establish the connection between the importers of the earlier ones,” he insisted. He declared that five people had been taken into custody in relation to the seizures.
“There have been five arrests in all,” Adeniyi stated. Three have been charged and have appeared in court out of the five. Additionally, Adeniyi emphasized that they are now being held on remand in Ikoyi Prisons till the substantive case hearing is held sometime next month.
He pledged that in order to find the people responsible for these actions, the service will collaborate with both domestic and foreign partners and customs administrations worldwide through the tool of customs-to-customs cooperation. “And make sure Nigeria doesn’t turn into a warehouse for them.”
