By Ajibola Adedoye
Nigeria’s renewed push to sanitise its trade and transit ecosystem has yielded major results, with the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) intercepting 20 diverted transit containers valued at ₦769.53 million along the Kano–Jigawa corridor.
The seizures, recorded through intelligence-led operations carried out between the second and fourth quarters of 2025, highlight what the Service describes as a growing crackdown on organised cargo diversion rings operating within Nigeria’s inland trade routes.
Speaking at a press briefing in Kano on Friday, 19 December 2025, the Comptroller-General of Customs (CGC), Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, said the operation underscores Customs’ determination to protect government revenue and preserve Nigeria’s credibility in global trade.
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Adeniyi noted that transit cargo abuse remains one of the most damaging economic crimes confronting the country. He warned that perpetrators and their collaborators should expect intensified surveillance, arrests, and prosecution. According to him, “There will be no hiding place for individuals or syndicates that seek to sabotage the economy through cargo diversion.”
Items recovered from the intercepted containers included vitrified tiles illegally rerouted from the Kano Free Trade Zone with a Duty Paid Value of ₦228.6 million, as well as diesel engine oil, polyester materials, used clothing, lace and printed fabrics, medical consumables, and Zamzam bottled water. Some of the consignments fall under prohibited imports as stipulated by the Common External Tariff (CET).
The Customs boss revealed that legal processes are ongoing on one of the containers, while two containers loaded with medical consumables have already been forfeited to the Federal Government following a ruling by the Federal High Court, Kano Division, delivered on 10 December 2025.
He also disclosed that one suspect, Abdulrahman Sani Adam, has been successfully prosecuted and convicted for container diversion. The court sentenced him to three years’ imprisonment with an option of a ₦3 million fine—an outcome Adeniyi described as a clear warning to would-be offenders.
In a move aimed at preventing future violations, the CGC announced the near-complete nationwide deployment of electronic container tracking devices. The technology, he said, allows Customs to monitor cargo movement in real time, enforce route compliance, and detect tampering from seaports to final inland destinations.
Reaffirming the Service’s zero-tolerance stance, Adeniyi stressed that Customs will continue to balance trade facilitation with strict enforcement. He urged importers, clearing agents, and logistics operators to comply fully with transit regulations and promptly report suspicious movements, warning that violations will attract prosecution, forfeiture of goods, and withdrawal of trading privileges.
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