The Nigeria Customs Service, Federal Operations Unit (FOU) Zone A, Ikeja, revealed that it seized 70 contraband items valued at N8.9 billion in July 2024. Kola Oladeji, the Customs Area Controller, disclosed this during a display of the seized goods in Lagos.
The seized items included 6,168 pieces of donkey skins, 37,630 sachets of tramadol, 11,820 new machetes, 4,740 bags of foreign rice, 978 kg of cannabis, 1,145 cartons of poultry products, and 15 imported vehicles. Additionally, N133 million was recovered through demand notices on short-paid consignments.
Oladeji noted a significant increase in seizures, from 50 in July 2023 to 70 in July 2024, with a duty-paid value rise of 245%. Fourteen suspects were arrested, and 11,700 liters of petrol were auctioned, with proceeds paid into the federation account.
He also highlighted smugglers’ use of smaller vehicles for distributing prohibited drugs, adding that intercepted cannabis would be handed over to the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency for further action.
