Who owns the ₦2.35bn Cocaine, Customs arrests 71-year-old, uncovers wider smuggling network

Fresh concerns have emerged over the growing sophistication of transnational smuggling networks after the Federal Operations Unit (FOU) Zone ‘A’ of the Nigeria Customs Service arrested a 71-year-old man allegedly transporting cocaine worth ₦2.35 billion along the Lagos-Abidjan corridor.

The suspect was apprehended in a Toyota Highlander conveying 6.35 kilogrammes of cocaine during a targeted operation on the international route, a development that has raised fresh questions about the scale of organised drug trafficking across Nigeria’s western border axis.

Speaking in Ikeja on Tuesday, Customs Area Controller of FOU Zone ‘A’, Gambo Aliyu, said the cocaine seizure formed part of a wider anti-smuggling crackdown that led to the interception of contraband with a duty-paid value exceeding ₦5.5 billion within eight weeks.

Beyond narcotics, Customs said it foiled 473 smuggling attempts across Lagos, Ogun, Oyo and Ondo states between February 3 and April 28, 2026.

Items seized included 8,794 bags of foreign rice equivalent to 15 trailer loads, 22 used vehicles, 328 bales of used clothing, 531 cartons of poultry products, 485 used tyres, and 69 cartons of spaghetti.

The agency also intercepted 31,705 litres of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), 1,188 jerrycans of vegetable oil, and 1,863 used refrigerator compressors.

In a separate operation, officers seized four cylinders of mercury weighing 80kg each. Aliyu described the substance as hazardous and regulated under the Minamata Convention on Mercury, raising concerns over possible illegal industrial or mining use.

Customs further disclosed that under a special anti-drug operation, codenamed Operation Hawk, officers intercepted 3,340 parcels of synthetic cannabis, popularly known as Ghana Loud, weighing 1,540kg.

The scale of the seizures has intensified scrutiny on the Lagos-Abidjan corridor, a major regional trade route increasingly exploited by traffickers moving illicit goods across West Africa.

Aliyu said the unit is deploying advanced enforcement tools, including geospatial intelligence, satellite imagery, drone surveillance, and predictive analytics, to track smuggling routes and improve border enforcement.

He added that the seized narcotics had been handed over to the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency for investigation and prosecution, while the mercury consignment would be transferred to the National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency.

Customs also recovered ₦97.7 million in underpaid duties during the review period.

However, beyond the seizures and arrests, a bigger question remains: who are the real financiers and owners behind these illicit consignments, and how long will the masterminds continue to evade justice while only couriers and middlemen are caught?