The Nigeria Customs Service intercepted two forty-foot containers carrying illicit drugs worth ₦3.67bn at the Tin Can Island Port in Lagos on Friday, 9 October. Port command spokesman Oscar Ivara confirmed that officers seized over 1.2 tonnes of narcotics during joint physical examinations with the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency. Smugglers now disguise synthetic narcotics as routine consumer cargo.
The first container, inspected on 2 September, held 890 packs of Delta-8 cannabis cookies and confectionery alongside two used luxury cars. Drug cartels mix high-potency edibles with second-hand vehicles to slide past standard customs profiles. Clandestine shipments exploit ordinary maritime trade.
Inspectors cracked a second container on 16 September that yielded 1,207 parcels of Colorado cannabis stuffed inside used Toyota vehicles and engine blocks. That single haul carried an estimated street value of ₦3.62bn. Commercial freight shields illicit cargo.
Mr Ivara warned freight forwarders and clearing agents that maritime authorities will block every attempt to exploit commercial supply chains for narcotics distribution. Enforcement teams plan to hand the seized narcotics to anti-drug agents for prosecution. Strict surveillance raises operational costs for criminal rings.
Seaports remain vulnerable transit points because illicit syndicates hide behind Nigeria’s massive demand for used cars and machinery. When narcotics enter ordinary shipping boxes, port inspections slow trade to a crawl. Port authorities must build faster digital tracking systems.