NIGERIA: Nigeria Takes Custody of 6,778kg Canadian Loud Seized at Lagos Port

By Ameenat Hamzat, Lagos, Nigeria

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency has formally taken custody of 6,778.5 kilograms of Canadian Loud, a potent strain of cannabis, intercepted during two separate operations at the Apapa Seaport in Lagos.

In a statement signed by the Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, the agency said the formal handover ceremony took place at the Apapa Port on Wednesday.

Speaking during the ceremony, NDLEA Chairman, Brigadier General Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd.), represented by the Agency’s Director of Seaport Operations, ACGN Ibinabo Archie-Abia, described the seizures as a major breakthrough in the fight against transnational drug trafficking.

Marwa said, “Through two major seizures recorded on 15th and 24th June 2026, we send a clear and unequivocal message that we are more determined than ever to dismantle organised criminal syndicates and drug trafficking networks operating within and beyond our borders.”

He explained that the seizures were the outcome of months of intelligence-led operations conducted by the NDLEA Special Investigation Unit and Marine Intelligence Unit in collaboration with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the Nigeria Customs Service.

Giving details of the operations, Marwa said, “The first container, CAAU 7569127, departed Toronto on 16th April 2026… It was subsequently moved to the Global Bonded Terminal before being transferred by water to Apapa Port on 10th June 2026, where it was intercepted during a joint examination.”

On the second shipment, he added, “The second container, HAMU 3246311, departed Montreal on 1st May 2026… Following discharge on 4th June 2026, it was moved to Apapa Port on 22nd June 2026, where it fell into the hands of our waiting officers.”

The NDLEA Chairman said the agency would go beyond confiscating drugs to targeting the financial networks behind the illicit trade.

Marwa stated, “We recognise that the staggering profits generated by illicit drug trafficking continue to fuel crimes against humanity and against our nation… Our work does not end with seizure. We are committed to identifying, arresting and prosecuting those responsible, to confiscating their criminal assets, and to ensuring that they derive no benefit whatsoever from their illegal enterprise.”

Commending the collaboration among security agencies, he said, “I commend, in the strongest terms, the dedication, professionalism and courage of the officers and men of the NDLEA, the Nigeria Customs Service and all sister security agencies who refused to look away and allow these dangerous substances to flood our communities.”

He added, “This success was made possible by the intelligence-sharing and operational synergy displayed by every participating agency. It is a powerful demonstration of what inter-agency collaboration, international cooperation and intelligence-driven operations can achieve in the fight against transnational organised crime and illicit drug trafficking.”