Customs Impounds N43.5bn Surveillance Drones, Expired Drugs At Port

David Adebayo

Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has impounded some surveillance drones, narcotics drugs and expired pharmaceutical drugs valued at N43.58 billion at the APM Terminals examination bay, Apapa Port, Lagos.
The Comptroller-General of Customs, Adewale Adeniyi, explained on Thursday that the seizures would be handed over to relevant agencies of government for further investigation.
He noted that five containers were loaded with expired tomato ketchup, antiseptic liquid, vaginal tablets and disposable nappies, saying these were products applied to the body and consumed by households.
Adeniyi noted that their importation after expiry places children, women and other consumers at risk of harm, stressing that the abuse of prohibited substances like codeine among young Nigerians had been the subject of national concern for years, and its connection to violent conduct, to family breakdown and to the loss of productive lives was well documented.
The comptroller general noted that a single container of this size would have supplied that trade for a considerable period.
He explained that the cannabis interceptions were the product of inter-agency work with the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, supported by credible intelligence from international security partners.
According to him, that intelligence was analysed and acted upon here, through cargo profiling, documentary scrutiny and targeted examination by officers of
this service.
Adeniyi said: “We also extracted 108 units of high-definition dual-camera drones from an intercepted container. Drones have lawful uses, and this Service has no quarrel with them. But equipment of this kind, in the wrong hands, becomes a means of surveillance, of reconnaissance and of delivery, and our security agencies have already met it in that role in the field.
“The Nigeria Customs Service Act, 2023 charges this service with more than the collection of revenue. It places on us the security of the supply chain, the protection of the border and the safety of what enters this country.
“Revenue is the part of our work that is counted publicly each quarter. The other part is measured in what never reaches the street, and it is that part I am reporting today. This administration has approached national security as a whole-of-government undertaking, in which each institution holding a piece of the problem is expected to act on it and to act with the others.
“The seaport is where several of those pieces meet. Narcotics, controlled pharmaceuticals, restricted equipment and unsafe goods arrive in the same containers, through the same agents, under the same false declarations, and
they are frequently handled by the same syndicates.
What has changed in recent years is the method.”
He added that concealment was now built into otherwise legitimate consignments, saying that narcotics were packed among vehicle spare parts and used vehicles.
According to him, controlled drugs travel beneath household goods, while restricted equipment was declared as ordinary electronics.
Adeniyi said: “The service has therefore spent this period building the means to target. We have strengthened cargo profiling and risk assessment across the commands, deployed the B’Odogwu platform to bring trade data into that assessment, and in July established an INTERPOL Data Centre at our Headquarters in Abuja, the 8th on the African continent giving officers access to more than 152 international databases.
“Alongside this, we have deepened operational cooperation with the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, (NAFDAC), the Office of the National Security Adviser and our international security partners. It is against that background that I present the outcome of sustained intelligence led operations at the Apapa Area Command.
“A total of 12 containers have been intercepted. Their contents fall into 3 categories, each carrying a consequence well beyond the port: narcotics and controlled pharmaceuticals, security-sensitive equipment, and expired goods intended for human use.
“The total duty paid value of the seizures is ₦43,588,618,859.00. For the public record, the items presented today are as follows: HAMU 3086682. 1 x 40ft. 4,777 parcels of cannabis sativa weighing 2,388.5kg, packed in 2 cartons, 48 jumbo bags and 40 drums; assorted automobile spare parts; one carton of coffee mix; 8 cartons of oats; and three vehicles. FANU 1933352. 1 x 40ft. 8,287 parcels of cannabis sativa weighing 4,145kg, packed in 162 bags; and three vehicles. MSKU 3941778. 1 x 20ft. 2,181 parcels of cannabis sativa weighing 1,090.5kg, packed in 5 cartons; 148 bags of foreign parboiled rice; assorted automobile spare parts; 2 boxes of lithium batteries; 1 carton of PV combiner box; 19 cartons of turmeric; 33 cartons of mangala fish; and 11 cartons of butterfly fish.
“TCKU 7653306. 1 x 40ft. 1,700 cartons containing 169,998 bottles of codeine syrup, concealed under household items. MSKU 9282528. 2 cartons containing 108 units of high-definition dual camera drones, extracted from the container. MRKU 6185100. 1 x 40ft. 425 bales of used clothing. MRKU 5535966. 1 x 40ft. 435 bales of used clothing. SEKU 4685299. 1 x 40ft. 422 bales of used clothing. SUDU 7593139. 1 x 20ft. Fully loaded with expired tomato ketchup.”