NDLEA companions US-DEA, UK-NCA over illicit drug seizure
The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has uncovered 1,000 kilogrammes of cocaine valued at N29.4 billion in a 20-foot export container imported on the Port and Terminal Multiservices Restricted (PTML) in Lagos.
The illicit medication have been exhibited to journalists yesterday after officers of the NCS and the Nationwide Drug Regulation Enforcement Company (NDLEA) performed speedy subject assessments on the parcels, which examined optimistic for cocaine.
The Customs Space Controller of the PTML Command, Joe Anani, described the interception as the biggest and first-ever onerous drug seizure within the command’s historical past.
In line with him, the PTML terminal operator first detected the suspicious packages in a 20-foot container with quantity GCNU1332851 on October 7, 2025, whereas disinfecting 39 empty containers imported solely for export use.
He mentioned that after the terminal operator knowledgeable the NCS, a joint examination involving the Customs, NDLEA, Division of State Providers (DSS), Police Anti-Bomb Squad, and different safety businesses confirmed the presence of fifty packages, every containing 20 parcels of cocaine.
Preliminary investigations, he mentioned, revealed that the container was loaded as empty at its final port of name in Freetown, Sierra Leone, with no consignee hooked up because it was not an import consignment.
Anani famous that no arrest had been made, because the container arrived in Nigeria with none import documentation, being strictly meant for export use.
He counseled the PTML terminal administration for his or her vigilance and cooperation, stressing that such synergy was very important to securing the nation’s ports and defending export integrity.
Anani reiterated the command’s dedication to creating PTML “a no-go space for prohibited objects”, including that the seized cocaine can be formally handed over to the NDLEA for additional investigation.
“This marks the primary illicit drug seizure in PTML’s historical past and is likely one of the most mysterious cocaine interceptions within the service’s report. Additional inquiries are anticipated to hint how the illicit substance entered the container and the community behind its motion via the Freetown port,” he mentioned.
Receiving the consignment, the Strategic Commander of the NDLEA, Tin Can Port Command, Daniel Onyishi, described the seizure as “mysterious”, noting that such an incident was unprecedented of their expertise on the ports.
“We’ve got not had such a factor. However the investigation has already commenced, and we’re engaged on that,” he mentioned. He assured that the company would uncover the supply of the cargo and the way it entered Nigeria, warning that the terminal would henceforth be a no-go space for smugglers making an attempt to make use of it as a transit level for illicit medication.
Onyishi didn’t give a timeline for the investigation however famous that such instances take appreciable time, involving lengthy tracing of the supply of the medication and figuring out these behind the smuggling community.
“Investigations are ongoing, and as quickly as they’re accomplished, the end result will probably be made public,” he added.
In the meantime, the NDLEA is working with the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and the UK Nationwide Crime Company (NCA) to unravel the cartel behind the importation.
The consignment was formally transferred to NDLEA custody for additional investigation yesterday, following collaborative engagements between the Chairman/Chief Government Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (rtd), and the Comptroller-Common of Customs, Dr. Adewale Adeniyi. Marwa directed that the company’s main worldwide companions be concerned within the investigation.
“In a swift response to the company’s request, officers of the US DEA and UK NCA have already joined the continuing investigation of the biggest single seizure of cocaine at Tin Can Port, Lagos. The essence of collaborating with our worldwide companions on this case is to make sure no stone is left unturned and each hole is sufficiently coated in order that finally we will get all of the masterminds of this enormous consignment delivered to e book wherever they’re positioned throughout the globe.
“This adopted glorious private engagement between myself and the Customs CG on this case,” Marwa said in his response to the seizure and ongoing investigation.
Images: Seized illicit medication and Customs and NDLEA Testing. Caption: Seized illicits and narcotic officers testing the medication
