The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Port and Terminal Multiservices Limited (PTML) Command, has intercepted a cocaine shipment valued at N29.4 billion.
Comptroller Joe Anani, Area Controller of the PTML Command, told reporters that the drugs were discovered in an empty 20-foot container arriving from Freetown, Sierra Leone, during a routine disinfection exercise on October 7, 2025.
According to Anani, the seizure followed a report from the PTML terminal operator, who noticed suspicious packages among 39 empty containers slated for export.
“The terminal operator alerted the Command immediately, and a joint examination was conducted with officers from the NDLEA, DSS, Police Anti-Bomb Squad, and other agencies,” he said.
During the inspection, 50 packages containing 20 parcels each were uncovered. Rapid tests confirmed the contents as cocaine, totaling 1,000 kilograms (one tonne) with a duty-paid value of N29,403,738,000.
Anani emphasized that the container was not an import consignment but part of empty containers brought in for export purposes. He described the interception as one of the most “mysterious cocaine seizures” in the history of the Service, noting that no arrests had been made since the container had no linked consignee.
He commended the PTML terminal operator for promptly reporting the anomaly and praised the collaboration among security agencies.
“This seizure underscores the high level of cooperation and vigilance among our officers, terminal operators, and sister security agencies,” he said, reaffirming the Command’s commitment to maintaining the integrity of Nigeria’s ports.
On behalf of the Comptroller-General of Customs, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, MFR, PhD, Anani stated that the seizure would be handed over to the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) for further investigation and necessary action.
