YOLA — The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Adamawa and Taraba Area Command, has intercepted petroleum products, foreign parboiled rice, foreign soap, second-hand clothing and other goods with a combined Duty Paid Value of ₦79.86 million in Adamawa State as part of intensified anti-smuggling operations.
Key Highlights
- Nigeria Customs intercepts goods valued at ₦79.86 million in Adamawa State.
- Seized items include 16,825 litres of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), foreign rice, soap and second-hand clothing.
- Officers recover 673 jerrycans of petrol and 266 bags of foreign parboiled rice.
- A Mitsubishi Canter truck allegedly used to transport smuggled goods is also seized.
- The operations cover several locations, including Sahuda, Maiha-Mubi and Belel-Goshidan.
- Customs urges community leaders to support efforts to combat smuggling and protect Nigeria’s economy.
Customs Intensifies Anti-Smuggling Operations in Adamawa
The Area Comptroller, Mohammed Tako, disclosed the seizures during a press conference in Yola on Friday. He said the operations were conducted at identified smuggling hotspots across the command.
Tako explained that the command was intensifying efforts to combat smuggling, support national economic growth and improve trade facilitation in line with international best practices.
He disclosed that officers recovered 451 cartons of foreign bar soap hidden in a bush near the River Benue during two months of intensified operations.
According to him, the goods were allegedly being prepared for movement into Nigeria when the suspects abandoned them and fled into the bush following the arrival of Customs officers.
“Confronted by the swift intervention of our officers, the suspects abandoned the contraband and fled into the bush,” he said.
Customs Intercepts 16,825 Litres of Petrol Near Nigeria-Cameroon Border
In a separate operation, Customs officers discovered 374 jerrycans of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), each containing 25 litres, along a bush path in Sahuda, near the Nigeria-Cameroon border, in the early hours of August 20, 2026.
The command also intercepted a Mitsubishi Canter truck with registration number XB 566 GML along the Wuro Alhaji-Maiha axis on September 14, 2026, at about 8:10 p.m.
The vehicle was carrying 116 bags of foreign parboiled rice, each weighing 50kg, and 50 cartons of foreign soap. Tako said the interception followed credible intelligence received by the command.
Another seizure took place on September 21, 2026, at about 2:45 a.m., when officers discovered 299 jerrycans of PMS, each containing 25 litres, along an unauthorised route on the Belel-Goshidan axis.
According to the comptroller, the petroleum products were allegedly intended to be smuggled out of Nigeria.
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Customs Seizes Foreign Rice, Maize and Second-Hand Clothes
Tako further disclosed that officers seized 150 bags of foreign parboiled rice, each weighing 50kg, 20 bags of local maize weighing 100kg each, 11 bales of second-hand clothing and five jumbo sacks of used clothes along a bush path on the Maiha-Mubi axis on October 2, 2026.
He said the items were discovered at about 6:00 a.m. following actionable intelligence and were allegedly intended for onward smuggling.
The seizures form part of the command’s wider efforts to disrupt illegal trade routes and prevent the movement of prohibited or improperly imported goods.
Breakdown of ₦79.86m Customs Seizures
Providing a breakdown of the recovered items, the comptroller listed the following:
- Petroleum products: 673 jerrycans of PMS, representing 16,825 litres.
- Foreign bar soap: 501 cartons.
- Foreign parboiled rice: 266 bags, each weighing 50kg.
- Second-hand clothing: 11 bales and five jumbo sacks.
- Vehicle: One Mitsubishi Canter truck allegedly used to transport the goods.
Tako put the total Duty Paid Value of the seized items at ₦79,857,500, equivalent to approximately ₦79.86 million.
Customs Cites Nigeria Customs Service Act 2023
The comptroller said the anti-smuggling operations were carried out under the Nigeria Customs Service Act, 2023, particularly Sections 150, 233, 245, 246 and 248, as well as Schedule 3 of the Common External Tariff, which outlines prohibited imports.
He called on community leaders to collaborate with the Nigeria Customs Service and other security agencies to tackle smuggling and related crimes.
Tako stressed that cooperation between local communities and security agencies was essential to protecting Nigeria’s economy and preventing the movement of prohibited goods across the country’s borders.
The command said it would continue its anti-smuggling operations as part of efforts to enforce customs laws and support legitimate trade.
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