Apapa Customs Intercepts Expired Pharmaceuticals, 1.8 Tonnes of "Canadian Loud" Cannabis Valued at over ₦12.7 Billion

The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Apapa Area Command, has intercepted a massive contraband shipment consisting of expired pharmaceutical products and 1.8 tonnes of high-grade Cannabis sativa. Organized as an intelligence-led operation, the tactical sweep successfully blocked the illegal re-labeling and distribution of hazardous medical supplies and illicit narcotics into the local market.

According to a public disclosure broadcast by the Nigeria Customs Service via its official communication portals, the breakthrough was detailed in an administrative briefing released by the Command's Public Relations Officer, Chief Superintendent of Customs Isah Sulaiman.

The image maker noted that the high-stakes seizures were achieved through precision risk-profiling mechanisms and joint operational synergy with the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) alongside other critical regulatory institutions.

During the enforcement sweep, border officers flagged and isolated two separate 40-foot shipping containers packed with expired pharmaceutical goods. Intelligence files indicated that the syndicates behind the shipment planned to secretly re-label the expired medications with falsified expiration dates before routing them into commercial circulation across the country.

The economic and public safety impact of the medical bust is immense, with the Customs command placing the combined Duty Paid Value (DPV) of the intercepted pharmaceuticals at exactly ₦12,784,479,341.72. Officials labeled the importation plot a malicious act of economic sabotage and a severe danger to public health.

Concurrently, a third 40-foot container, marked with registration number CAAU7569127, was subjected to a 100 percent physical inspection by enforcement agents. The search uncovered a massive cargo of premium Cannabis sativa, colloquially known on the streets as "Canadian loud."

A thorough inventory of the container revealed 3,639 individually wrapped sachets of the drug, with each package weighing 500 grams, bringing the cumulative weight of the seized narcotics to approximately 1,819 kilograms (1.81 tonnes). Chief Superintendent Sulaiman explained that the traffickers had creatively stashed the drug bags and storage drums inside three imported vehicles loaded into the container: a black Toyota, a Nissan vehicle, and a Toyota Sienna.

Reacting to the development, the Customs Area Controller for the Apapa Command, Comptroller Emmanuel Oshoba, issued a stern warning to international smuggling rings and local collaborators, describing them as direct adversaries of the nation's well-being.

“We have the intelligence, the technology, and the resolve to identify and apprehend them,” Comptroller Oshoba asserted. “Anyone still contemplating these criminal acts should desist immediately, because the consequences will be swift, decisive, and uncompromising.”

The maritime chief concluded by reassuring legitimate business owners that while the Apapa Port complex and its surrounding economic zones remain under high-density, round-the-clock surveillance to block saboteurs, the enforcement strategies are engineered to ensure smooth cargo clearance for law-abiding traders.