Customs Uncovers 399 Jojef Rifles in Seized Tin Can Port Shipment

The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has uncovered 399 fully assembled Jojef firearms following the completion of the coupling and detailed examination of a suspected illicit arms shipment seized at the Tin Can Island Port Command in Lagos.

The development, announced on Sunday, August 9, 2026, represents a major breakthrough in the Service’s efforts to prevent the proliferation of illegal arms and other prohibited items through Nigeria’s ports and borders.

The seizure was initially disclosed by the Comptroller-General of Customs, Adewale Adeniyi, on Thursday, August 6, when he revealed that Customs operatives had intercepted a container containing crates of knocked-down components preliminarily identified as Jojef pump-action rifles.

Following a comprehensive examination and coupling of the components, Customs officials established that the shipment contained 399 complete firearms, in addition to a substantial quantity of spare and supplementary rifle parts.

The additional components recovered from the consignment include 89 frames, 16 heat shields, 10 trigger pins, three pistons, 25 locking lugs, 80 charging handles, 39 pistol-grip screws, 34 springs, 57 trigger groups, 66 foregrip latches, 45 foregrips or handguards, four pistol grips and five barrels.

The discovery has heightened concerns over attempts by criminal networks to exploit Nigeria’s maritime and land borders for the movement of weapons, particularly as the country approaches another major electoral cycle.

Adeniyi had warned that criminal elements could seek to take advantage of increased movements through the country’s borders, seaports and airports to introduce prohibited items into Nigeria.

“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,” he said.

The Customs chief said the Service would strengthen surveillance and enforcement operations to frustrate attempts to smuggle firearms and other dangerous items into the country.

The seizure also underscores the increasing importance of intelligence-led cargo profiling and physical examination at Nigeria’s seaports, particularly in detecting consignments in which prohibited goods are concealed among legitimate or apparently innocuous cargo.

Adeniyi reiterated the NCS’s commitment to working with other security and law-enforcement agencies to identify the individuals and networks responsible for the attempted importation of the firearms.

He specifically highlighted collaboration with the National Centre for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons (NCCSALW) under the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA), stressing that inter-agency cooperation remained critical to disrupting arms-trafficking networks.

According to the Customs management, the Service’s strategy involves stronger border surveillance, intelligence sharing and coordinated enforcement operations aimed at preventing weapons from reaching criminal groups.

The completed inventory and assessment of the seized shipment have also paved the way for the transfer of the recovered firearms to the NCCSALW.

The planned handover is expected to ensure that the weapons are taken into official custody and removed from circulation, while further investigations focus on tracing the origin of the shipment, identifying its intended recipients and establishing the wider network behind the attempted importation.

The Customs Service said the operation formed part of its broader mandate to protect national security while facilitating legitimate international trade.

The interception comes amid heightened national concern over the trafficking and circulation of small arms and light weapons, which security agencies have repeatedly linked to violent crime and other forms of insecurity.

By preventing the 399 rifles and associated components from entering the illicit market, the operation has potentially disrupted a significant arms supply chain.

The NCS said it would continue to strengthen intelligence-led enforcement and collaboration with relevant agencies to prevent the use of Nigeria’s ports, airports and land borders as channels for the movement of prohibited weapons.