The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Apapa Area Command, has intercepted two stolen Lexus cars from Canada and six containers filled with prohibited items, including unregistered drugs, codeine syrup, used clothes, and cosmetics. The total value of the seizures is estimated at N3.2 billion.
Customs Area Controller, Comptroller Babatunde Olomu, disclosed this on Thursday while addressing journalists at the command’s headquarters in Apapa, Lagos. He said the two stolen vehicles—a 2024 Lexus RX 450 and a 2023 Lexus RX 350—were shipped into Nigeria inside a 40-foot container with registration number MRKU 0904594. The cars were falsely declared as food items.
Olomu said, “We found two stolen vehicles inside a container declared as food items. One is a 2024 Lexus RX 450 with chassis number JTJCJNGA6R2017707, and the other is a 2023 Lexus RX 350 with chassis number 2T2BAMCAPCO32741. Both cars were stolen from Canada.”
He explained that during the period under review, Customs officers also intercepted six other containers filled with prohibited goods. These include unregistered pharmaceuticals, used clothing, cosmetics, and other smuggled items.
According to Olomu, one of the containers, a 40-foot container with registration number SUDU 8685733, was found to be carrying 1,698 bottles of RTPL CSC Cough Syrup with codeine, which were hidden inside 202 packages of water closets.
Another container, with registration number MRSU 4846204, was found to contain 1,690 cartons of codeine syrup concealed in toilet seats. Olomu said the street value of the codeine in the two containers is about N2.7 billion.
He further revealed that a container with registration number ONEU 1153150 carried 1,584 packages of Globatin anti-mark cream and Clobetasol 30g, falsely declared as truck tyres. Another 40-foot container with number MRSU 3258823 was filled with various pharmaceuticals, including Rabeprazole for injection, Zahifranil tablets (25mg), Vancomycin Hydrochloride (1000mg), and Cyproheptadine with Vitamin B complex.
Olomu said some of the drugs did not have registration numbers from the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), and were falsely declared as kitchen wares and tables.
Another 40-foot container with number SEKU 4716830 was found to contain 390 bales of used clothing, which are banned under Nigeria’s import laws.
The Comptroller stated that the seizures were made possible through intelligence sharing, international cooperation, and collaboration with the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA). He stressed that the Customs Service is committed to safeguarding Nigerians from harmful imports.
“While the Nigeria Customs Service is responsible for facilitating trade and collecting government revenue, we also have a duty to protect Nigerians from dangerous imports that pose health and safety risks,” Olomu said.
He warned that the intercepted containers violated several regulations, including the Nigeria Customs Service Act 2023 and the World Customs Organization’s Operation Stop IV, which targets counterfeit and unauthorized medical supplies.
Olomu said that three suspects had been arrested in connection with the seized containers and are currently being interrogated. He promised that they would face the full wrath of the law once investigations are complete.
He assured Nigerians that the NCS will remain vigilant in its duties and will not allow selfish smugglers to endanger the lives of citizens for profit.
