By ZAKAA LAZARUS
The Nigeria Customs Service, NCS, has handed over 399 pump-action rifles seized at Tin-Can Island Port, Lagos, to the National Centre for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons, NCCSALW, under the Office of the National Security Adviser.
The Comptroller-General of Customs, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, disclosed this during the handover ceremony on Monday.
According to him, the firearms were intercepted after the container conveying them was flagged by the Service’s risk management system.
He said the container arrived at the port on July 8 aboard MV _VELIKA_, with the rifles concealed in knocked-down form to evade detection.
“Inside were firearm components, taken apart and hidden in knocked-down form. That is a deliberate method. It is chosen for one reason only, which is that a rifle in pieces does not look like a rifle,” Adeniyi said.
He described the illegal importation of such a large consignment of firearms as a serious threat to national security, especially amid ongoing challenges of terrorism, banditry, kidnapping and violent crime.
The Customs boss also expressed concern over the potential impact of illicit firearms on the country’s forthcoming electioneering season, stressing that the NCS would not allow Nigeria’s ports and borders to become channels for the importation of weapons.
Adeniyi attributed the interception to investments in technology under the Trade Modernisation Project, particularly the B’Odogwu platform, which integrates cargo clearance, automated risk management, cargo tracking and non-intrusive inspection.
He said the objective of the technology goes beyond revenue collection to strengthening national security by enabling Customs to identify high-risk consignments without physically opening every container.
The CGC disclosed that two suspects, Robert Eze and Ejiogu Godson, had been arrested in connection with the consignment and remanded by the Federal High Court in Lagos.
He added that one of the suspects was arrested on July 31 at a bonded terminal while attempting to facilitate the release of the container, and that their arraignment had been fixed for August 25.
He said the handover of the firearms to the NCCSALW marked another stage in the enforcement process, following the interception of the weapons and arrest of the alleged importers.
Speaking at the ceremony, the National Coordinator of NCCSALW, Johnson Kokumo, said the Centre had recovered more than 21,000 small arms and light weapons since its establishment, with over 19,000 already destroyed.
Kokumo commended the Customs Service for its collaboration, describing the recovery of illicit weapons as a direct blow to criminal networks and an important step towards protecting citizens.
He assured that the 399 firearms would be properly catalogued, profiled and documented in accordance with national legislation and international best practices.
He added that serviceable weapons required for authorised state security operations would be accounted for, while obsolete, illegal and unserviceable firearms would be destroyed.
Kokumo said the Centre would continue to work with relevant security agencies to prevent illicit weapons from returning to criminal hands.
