Ogun Customs Generates ₦259.8m Revenue, Seizes Contraband Worth ₦4.63bn in Three Months

 

The Ogun I Area Command of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has announced the collection of ₦259.78 million in revenue and the seizure of contraband goods with a Duty Paid Value (DPV) of ₦4.63 billion between April 1 and June 23, 2026.

The Acting Customs Area Controller, Deputy Comptroller Oladapo Afeni, disclosed this on Wednesday during a press briefing held at the Command headquarters in Idiroko, Ogun State.

Mr Afeni said the revenue was generated from baggage assessments, auction sales of perishable goods, Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) seizures, and other charges.

According to him, the figure represents a 238 per cent increase compared to the ₦76.81 million collected during the same period in 2025.

"The increase in revenue collection was made possible through the resilience of our officers and strict enforcement of import and export regulations in line with extant laws," he stated.

The Customs boss revealed that the Command recorded 146 seizures during the period under review, involving foreign parboiled rice, cannabis, footwear, petroleum products, tyres, and other prohibited items.

Among the notable interceptions was a truck carrying 2,427 smuggled pneumatic tyres, intercepted on June 3 along the Ijebu-Ode axis. The truck, bearing registration number ENU-660-XY, reportedly displayed a misleading "For Sale" inscription to evade detection.

In another operation on June 16, Customs officers intercepted a truck with registration number BKD-796-XB along the Itori-Wasimi-Abeokuta route. The vehicle was found carrying 113 bags of foreign parboiled rice concealed beneath bags of cement.

Mr Afeni said the driver attempted to evade arrest and endangered officers by trying to ram a patrol vehicle before he was apprehended.

The Command also intercepted another truck on June 14 along the Afamin-Igbogila axis carrying 630 bags of foreign rice, barely a month after the seizure of military camouflage uniforms along the Sagamu Expressway.

The total Duty Paid Value of the seized goods stood at ₦4,628,591,970.16.

Afeni explained that most of the items were seized for violating import and export regulations and for falling under the prohibited goods list.

On export activities, the Controller disclosed that the Command facilitated the export of 20,972 metric tonnes of goods with a Free-On-Board (FOB) value of ₦1.049 billion during the period.

The exports consisted mainly of white talc, crushed thermal coal, and compressed natural gas (CNG).

He noted that the performance marked a significant improvement compared to the corresponding period in 2025, when no export activity was recorded by the Command.

Mr Afeni described the handover as a demonstration of the strong synergy among security agencies in combating illicit trade and safeguarding national security.

The Acting Controller disclosed that the Joint Border Security Committee, comprising Nigerian and Beninese security agencies, recently carried out coordinated operations targeting criminal hideouts and abandoned structures around the Idiroko-Igolo border corridor.

He warned smugglers and other criminal elements to steer clear of the area, stressing that security agencies on both sides of the border remained united in maintaining law and order.