Adeniyi Displays 9 Containers of Expired Pharmaceuticals, Narcotics Worth ₦53.3bn at Apapa Customs Command
Comptroller-General of Customs, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi (first right) conducting journalists round the seized items inside APM Terminals Apapa.
By Dapo Olawuni
The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) on Wednesday paraded nine seized containers of narcotics and expired pharmaceutical products at the Apapa Area Command, with a cumulative Duty Paid Value of ₦53.3billion.
Speaking at a press briefing and handing over ceremony, the Comptroller-General of Customs, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi described the nine seizures as products of painstaking intelligence gathering, scanning analysis, physical examination and active collaboration with the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA).
Giving a breakdown, Adeniyi listed the seizures as follows: a 40ft container (CAAU7569127) containing 3,639 parcels of Cannabis Sativa (“Canadian Loud”) weighing 1,819.5 kilograms, concealed with imported vehicles and spare parts; a second 40ft container (HAMU3246311) with 9,918 sachets of Cannabis Sativa weighing about 4.95 metric tonnes, concealed with vehicles and household items; two 40ft containers (MRKU3816476 and TGBU5399178) together conveying 1,700 and 1,698 cartons of Codeine Syrup — roughly 339,800 bottles — concealed inside casserole products; three 40ft containers (HASU4519480, MRKU4961275 and PCIU8771576) carrying expired pharmaceuticals including Tramadol (Timakadol), Oxytocin injections, Mexclor Eye Drops, Carbamazepine tablets (Termigral), Cloxicillin capsules, Cynamine Vitamin B12 injections and Becoline B-Complex injections; a 20ft container (MRKU6964435) carrying Piccan Teething Powder; and a 40ft container (TCKU7000791) with 1,100 packages of CHACOLD Chlorpheniramine Maleate Capsules bearing a fake NAFDAC registration number (04-6646) and a December 2028 expiry date.
“These seizures represent far more than monetary value. They represent lives protected, families preserved, communities secured and countless young Nigerians shielded from the devastating consequences of drug abuse and unsafe medicines.
“The importation of expired pharmaceuticals and controlled substances poses a direct threat to public health, while the sophisticated concealment methods adopted by these criminal networks demonstrate their determination to exploit legitimate trade channels for illicit purposes.
“However, these interceptions equally demonstrate that the Nigeria Customs Service possesses the intelligence capability, technological capacity and operational readiness to detect, intercept and dismantle these criminal enterprises” Adeniyi stated
On the last consignment, Adeniyi said the shipment initially appeared legitimate but was flagged through Non-Intrusive Inspection and intelligence analysis, after which verification established that the product was not NAFDAC-registered.
He said the use of a fake registration number pointed to a deliberate attempt to smuggle unregistered pharmaceutical products into the Nigerian market, and the consignment was seized under the Nigeria Customs Service Act 2023 for handover to NAFDAC.
The Comptroller-General said narcotic drugs would be formally handed to the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) for investigation and prosecution, while expired pharmaceuticals go to National Agency for Food Drugs Administration and Control (NAFDAC) for regulatory action and safe disposal.
He commended the Apapa Area Command and reaffirmed that “every intelligence lead will be pursued, every violation thoroughly investigated and every offender brought to justice in accordance with the law,” warning smugglers that Nigeria’s ports “are no longer safe havens.”
The narcotics were formally handed over to the NDLEA Chairman, Brig-Gen Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), represented by Assistant Commander-General of Narcotics Achie-Abia Ogboba, by the Apapa Customs Controller, Comptroller Emmanuel Oshoba.
Speaking on behalf of Brig-Gen Marwa, Ogboba described the event as a landmark in NDLEA-Customs synergy, noting that the agencies had jointly removed 6,778.5 kilograms of Cannabis Indica (“Canadian Loud”) from circulation through two major seizures recorded on 15th and 24th June 2026.
She credited the operation to intelligence-led work by the NDLEA Special Investigation Unit and Marine Intelligence Unit, in collaboration with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), developed over four months of surveillance.
Tracing the trafficking route, Ogboba said the first container, CAAU7569127, left Toronto on 16 April 2026, moved by rail to Montreal, then by vessel Ghallow Express to Tangier Med, Morocco, on 6 May, before trans-shipment onto the Spartel Trader, which berthed at Tin Can Island Port on 27 May. It was moved to the Global Bonded Terminal and transferred by water to Apapa Port on 10 June, where it was intercepted.
The second container, HAMU3246311, left Montreal on 1 May aboard the Africa Express, was trans-shipped onto the Algeciras Express on 15 May to Tin Can Island Port, discharged on 4 June and moved to Apapa Port on 22 June, where it was seized.
She commended officers of the NDLEA, Customs and other security agencies, and thanked the Customs Service for its cooperation.
NAFDAC’s representative at the event, Mr Olakunle Olaniran, who also received a container of fake pharmaceuticals from Customs, commended the synergy between the agency and the NCS.
