The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has handed over another 204 units of illegally imported firearms intercepted and seized by the operatives of the Tincan Island Command of the Service to the National Centre for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons (NCCSALW).
The exercise was carried out on Monday in Lagos on behalf of the Comptroller General of Customs, CGC Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, by the Deputy Comptroller General of Customs in charge of Enforcement Investigation and Inspection, DCG Timi Bomodi.
DCG Bomodi, who handed the weapons to the Zonal Director, South West Zone of the NCCSALW, CP Abiodun Alamutu (Rtd.), said the exercise marked yet another significant seizure by the Nigeria Customs Service, Tincan Island Port Command, which he highlighted was preceded by credible intelligence and sustained efforts to prevent the importation and circulation of illegally imported firearms into Nigeria.
He recalled that, on August 18, 2026, the Comptroller-General of Customs, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, paid a working visit to this Command, during which he briefed members of the press on the landmark interception of knocked-down components of firearms.
He said those firearm components were subsequently assembled into 399 pump-action rifles, and were officially handed over to the National Centre for the Control of Small Arms and Light
Bomodi said the activities of these agents of darkness have once again necessitated “our gathering here today, and I am glad to inform you that once again, the efforts and commitment of our brave and dedicated officers have made good to triumph over evil.”
He noted that based on credible information gathered on a 20-foot container with No. TEMU 184536/9, which arrived from Turkey aboard vessel MV Algeciras Express on August 16, 2026, the container was flagged and subjected to a 100 per cent physical examination on August 18, 2026.
According to the DCG, after thorough examination, the container was found to contain knocked-down firearm components concealed among declared used goods, including furnitures, refrigerators, solar panels and detergent.
He said that further discrepancies were also discovered in the consignment documents, particularly regarding the identity of the consignee.
These discrepancies, according to him, were part of the ongoing investigation into the shipment and those connected to it.
“The Command immediately put together a team of experts from the Nigeria Customs Service Armament Unit and that of the National Centre for the Control of Small Arms and Lights weapons, under the Office of the National Security Adviser, to carry out the assembling of these parts and a total of 204 MAS 49 ALTER MAGNUM pump-action rifles alongside various numbers of left-over components were uncovered,” DCG Bomodi further asserted.
The various leftover parts according to him, include 39 Trigger Pin, 58 Locking Lugs, 53 Charging Handle, 55 Pistol Grip Screws, 56 Springs, 56 Trigger Group, 38 Forward Grip (Hand Guard), 67 Forward Grip Latch, 56 Pistol Grip, 54 Barrel and 2 U-Plate.
DCG Bomodi averred that the current seizure was a further indication that the Service is maintaining heightened surveillance and intelligence-led enforcement against the illicit movement of firearms through the ports and borders.
He noted that the items have been secured, documented and would be formally handed over to the National Centre for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons for appropriate statutory action, highlighting that this operation underscores the importance of intelligence-sharing and collaboration between the office of the National Security Adviser (NSA), Nigeria Customs Service and other security agencies. “This whole of Government approach to the menace of Arms smuggling and other criminal activities at our ports and borders has proven to be very effective as attested to by this seizure,” he added.
” Let me use this opportunity to reiterate the warning of the CGC to smugglers, arms traffickers and their collaborators that illegal arms will not find their way to the wrong end of the value chain and the space for concealment is becoming increasingly limited. Our risk management system is very robust and effective; there are no weak links in our architecture, so those who believe that firearms can be disguised as household goods, concealed in containers or imported through false or inconsistent documentation should understand that intelligence-led enforcement, technological tools, profiling and inter-agency collaboration are making such schemes increasingly difficult to execute.”
Bomodi maintained that the Service would continue to collaborate with all relevant authorities to identify, intercept and investigate consignments that pose a threat to national security.
“We will also pursue the networks behind such consignments and not merely focus on the physical seizure of the prohibited items. Our objective is to expose the entire chain involved in the illicit movement of firearms from the source and shipment to the intended destination and beneficiaries.
We also encourage members of the trading public, especially the clearing agents who may have any information that can lead to the arrest of would-be importers of these items, to come forward. Their assistance in this regard should be considered a patriotic duty.”
