Customs Seize Expired Drugs Worth ₦12.78bn, 1.8 Tonnes Of Cannabis At Apapa

The Nigeria Customs Service, Apapa Area Command, has intercepted two 40-foot containers of expired pharmaceutical products and seized 1.8 tonnes of Cannabis sativa in intelligence-driven operations coordinated with the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency.

Punch reported that the Command’s Public Relations Officer, Chief Superintendent of Customs Isah Sulaiman, disclosed the seizures in a statement posted on the Nigeria Customs X account on Friday.

According to the statement, the expired pharmaceutical products were intended for illegal re-labelling and reintroduction into circulation. The combined Duty Paid Value of the intercepted expired pharmaceuticals is ₦12,784,479,341.72, which the Command described as a significant act of economic sabotage and a threat to public health.

Channels TV also reported that officers seized a 40-foot container numbered CAAU7569127 containing 3,639 sachets of Cannabis sativa, popularly referred to as “Canadian loud,” each weighing 500 grammes, for a total estimated weight of about 1,819 kilogrammes.

Sulaiman said preliminary field tests confirmed the substance as Cannabis sativa, adding that the drugs were concealed inside a black Toyota Nissan vehicle, a Toyota Sienna, and within bags and drums packed inside the container.

Comptroller Emmanuel Oshoba warned perpetrators to desist, stating that “unpatriotic importers and their collaborators who deliberately engage in smuggling, drug trafficking and the importation of expired pharmaceuticals are enemies of Nigeria’s progress.”

Sources: Punch, Channels TV