In a significant achievement in the fight against cross-border smuggling of weapons and ammunition, the Port and Terminal Multi-Services Limited(PTML) Customs Command has discovered caches of arms that were imported into the country on 25 separate occasions by officers using various vehicles over a three-year period from 2022 to 2025.
Meanwhile, the Command has stated that it raked in N44,058,849,416.65, two days to the end of the month, surpassing N40,497,594,223.89 collected in January 2025, showing a difference of N3,561,255,192.76, which represents 8.8 percent increase in revenue.
Handing over the arms and ammunition to the National Centre for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons(NCCSALW), South West Zone, on Friday, the Command’s Customs Area Controller(CAC), Compt. Joe Anani, said,
“These seizures are fallout of the collective due diligence of the command and other sister agencies in the port. We are using this occasion to reiterate that PTML remains a no go area for unlawful trade under any guise.
“As a command, we have an unshaken commitment to implement the Revised Kyoto Convention, which is a World Customs Organisation (WCO) instrument for trade facilitation while using available manpower and technology to exercise the required control for import and export trade.” He added.
Anani also noted that the event “underscores three very important areas of our function as a service. One, it expresses our anti- smuggling resolve at ensuring that prohibited items do not escape from our checks. Two, our commitment to ensure that only legitimate trade thrives within our borders. Three, our shared commitment to inter agency collaboration, fostering cooperation”.
Affirming that the hand over had the approval of the Comptroller -General of Customs, Dr. Adewale Adeniyi, he listed the seized weapons to include:
Five pistols of different make; One Crossman pump master rifle; One hundred and thirty two numbers of Remington live cartridges.
Others are: Fifty one numbers of 9mm Lugar live ammunition; Four Numbers of 9mm magazines; Fourty Numbers of 9mm, NIM FC 30-30 blank and hollow ammunition; One hundred and eighteen numbers of 9mm empty shells.
Applauding the stakeholders for a shared success and bolstered compliance, Anani announced that the Command would soon deploy scanners for cargo examination.
He said, ” I am pleased to announce that this command will receive scanners soon as part of the modernisation project and our capacity to detect concealment, like these arms and ammunition would be greatly enhanced.
“Under the NCS Modernisation Project, which began in this command, the Unified Customs Management System (UCMS) also known as B’Odogwu has raised the bar of our productivity.” Anani further stated.
