Customs Intercepts Components of Over 140 Rifles, Seizes N373.8m Cannabis Cargo at TinCan Port

The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has intercepted a container carrying components of more than 140 pump-action rifles and seized cannabis-infused products with a combined street value of ₦373.8 million at the TinCan Island Port in Lagos.

The Comptroller-General of Customs (CGC), Adewale Adeniyi, disclosed the seizures on Thursday, 6 August 2026, while briefing journalists at the TinCan Island Port Command.

The interceptions, according to the Customs chief, were the result of intelligence-led operations and enhanced risk profiling aimed at preventing prohibited goods, arms and narcotics from entering Nigeria through legitimate trade channels.

Adeniyi said the container conveying the rifle components arrived at the port aboard the vessel MV VELIKA on 8 July 2026.
The consignment was subsequently flagged by the NCS’s intelligence-driven risk management system for enhanced scrutiny.

A detailed physical examination of the container uncovered concealed crates containing knocked-down components preliminarily identified as parts of JoJeff pump-action rifles.

The discovery raised serious national security concerns, particularly given the potential use of such weapons in criminal activities and the wider security challenges confronting the country.

The Customs chief said investigations had so far resulted in the arrest of two suspects linked to the consignment, while another principal suspect remained at large.

He said the Service was actively tracking the fleeing suspect as investigations continued to unravel the wider network behind the attempted importation.

Customs intercepts cannabis-infused products worth ₦373.8m
In a separate operation, Customs officers also intercepted two 40-foot containers carrying different forms of cannabis-infused products concealed alongside other imported items, including used vehicles, generators and batteries.

The seized products comprised 109 cartons of Delta-8 cannabis-infused pre-roll cookies, 125 cartons of Delta-8 cannabis-infused gummies and 73 cartons of cannabis-infused cookies.

The total street value of the seized cannabis products was put at ₦373,802,640.

The latest seizure highlights the continued attempts by organised criminal networks to exploit Nigeria’s ports and legitimate commercial supply chains to move prohibited substances into the country.

According to Adeniyi, the scale and sophistication of the interceptions demonstrated the increasingly complex methods being deployed by transnational criminal organisations.

He said the successful operations were also evidence of the effectiveness of the NCS’s intelligence-led enforcement strategy, advanced risk-profiling systems and collaboration with other security and law-enforcement agencies.

Adeniyi warned that criminal groups could attempt to exploit Nigeria’s borders, seaports and airports as the country approaches another major election cycle.

He said the Customs Service was already strengthening its surveillance and enforcement operations to prevent the movement of arms and other prohibited items that could undermine national security and the peaceful conduct of elections.

“We are about entering a major election cycle and we know that by this period, men of the underworld will want to use our borders, our ports, our airports to bring in items like this. We are going to redouble our efforts to ensure that we do not allow them to do so.”

The warning comes against the backdrop of longstanding concerns over the movement of illicit arms into Nigeria and the potential connection between arms trafficking and violent crime, banditry, kidnapping and other forms of organised criminal activity.

The Customs chief also warned against internal collaboration with smugglers and criminal networks, stressing that officers found facilitating the illegal importation of prohibited goods would face consequences.

He said the NCS would not provide cover for personnel who attempted to compromise the Service’s mandate for personal gain.

“The Nigeria Customs Service will not harbour any of these people who want to serve as accomplices or use their position to influence the importation of goods that will threaten our peace and security and the peaceful conduct of the next general election.”

Adeniyi called on members of the public to provide credible and actionable intelligence that could assist security agencies in identifying smuggling networks and preventing the movement of illicit goods.

He said public cooperation remained important in tackling organised crime, particularly as criminal networks continued to devise new methods of concealing prohibited items within legitimate cargo.

The CGC commended officers of the TinCan Island Port Command and the Customs Enforcement Unit for what he described as their vigilance, professionalism and commitment to the Service’s enforcement responsibilities.

He said the NCS would continue to identify, arrest and prosecute individuals involved in the attempted importation and distribution of prohibited goods.

The seizures, he added, reinforced the Service’s dual responsibility of protecting Nigeria’s borders from security threats while facilitating legitimate international trade.

The Customs Service’s latest operations also underscore the growing importance of intelligence, cargo profiling and inter-agency collaboration in securing Nigeria’s ports, as smugglers increasingly attempt to exploit the volume and complexity of international maritime trade to conceal illicit consignments.