Crime

Customs Seize Expired Food, Illegal Pharmaceuticals Worth N921bn at Apapa Port

Published by Tope Fakinlede on April 30th, 2025.

Customs Seize Expired Food, Illegal Pharmaceuticals Worth N921bn at Apapa Port

The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has announced the interception of expired food products, unauthorized pharmaceuticals, and prohibited security equipment, with an estimated value of over N921 billion at Apapa Port, Lagos.

Comptroller-General Adewale Adeniyi, speaking during a press conference at the Apapa Command, revealed that the seizures were made during intensified anti-smuggling operations carried out between January and April 2025. The contraband was intercepted through 11 separate operations involving five 40-foot containers, two 20-foot containers, and four additional seizures of smuggled goods hidden in bulk cargo.

During the briefing, Adeniyi also discussed the ongoing implementation of the Customs Unified Management Information System (CUMIS), known as B’Odogwu. He described the pilot phase at PTML and Tin Can Island Port as critical, albeit not without teething issues. Earlier visits to those ports, he said, allowed him to directly assess the challenges users faced with the new platform.

“We anticipated challenges with the launch of a system of this scale, but we are committed to resolving them through stakeholder engagement and adaptive strategies,” he said.

Highlighting the enforcement efforts, Adeniyi stated that the Apapa Command had increased surveillance and inspection across ports, airports, and land borders in response to evolving smuggling tactics used by transnational criminal syndicates.

He raised concerns about the influx of unregistered medicines—particularly sexual performance enhancers—entering the Nigerian market. These substances, lacking approval from the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), pose serious risks to public health.

The intercepted goods included expired margarine, pharmaceuticals without NAFDAC registration, and restricted items such as surveillance drones and radio equipment that lacked authorization from the Office of the National Security Adviser.

Among the seized cargo were 89 cartons of unregistered drugs in container CAAU6514500, 242 cartons in TCNU6880130, and over 1,000 cartons of sildenafil citrate tablets in container MRSU3041714. A 40-foot container held 1,400 assorted unregistered drug packages, and another had 805 packages misdeclared as cosmetic products.

Two 20-foot containers (GCNU1367992 and GCNU1372704) were found to contain expired margarine. Authorities also uncovered 60 combat drones in MSKU9329923, valued at N15.9 million, and 53 helicopter drones from container CFAX3 worth N