Customs Seizes N3 Billion Worth of Illicit Donkey Products

Customs Seizes N3 Billion Worth of Illicit Donkey Products

The Federal Operations Unit, Zone ‘B’ of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), on Tuesday, 21 2024, in Kaduna, says it has intercepted consignments of endangered donkey products with a combined Duty Paid Value (DPV) of approximately Three Billion Naira, resulting in the arrest of four suspects.

Comptroller Ahmadu Shuaibu, during a press briefing on the Unit’s activities from 17 April to 17 May 2024, highlighted two significant seizures of illegal donkey products.

Comptroller Shuaibu explained that on April 25, 2024, operatives, acting on credible intelligence, the Unit intercepted a truck along Sokoto/Gusau Road in Zamfara State. The truck brought to Kaduna for further examination, was found to be transporting 750 sacks of donkey bones, valued at over Two Billion, Three Hundred and Sixty-Three Million Naira.

According to the statement, a second significant interception occurred on 5 May 2024, when two Canter trucks carrying 860 sacks of dried donkey meat were seized along Kontagora-Tegina Road in Niger State. These seizures collectively underscore a disturbing trend in the illegal trade of donkey products, pushing the species closer to extinction.

“The illegal trading of donkey products not only violates national laws but also contravenes international conventions aimed at protecting endangered species,” Shuaibu stated, referencing Section 55 of the NCS Act 2023 and the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).

The unit also confiscated 58,740 sachets of tramadol and 48,000 ampules of Anelgin injection concealed within motor spare parts on May 2, 2024. These drugs were intercepted along Saminaka/Nimbiya/Kafanchan axis in Kaduna State had a DPV of One Hundred and Sixty-Seven Million, Five Hundred Thousand Naira.

Other items intercepted within the period include 12 vehicles, 174 bags of foreign rice, 234 jerry cans of PMS, and various other goods, bringing the total DPV of seized items to over Three Billion, One Hundred and Seventy-Five Million Naira.

Comptroller Shuaibu emphasised the unit’s commitment to enforcing anti-smuggling laws with advanced intelligence and ICT tools, urging potential smugglers to reconsider their actions. He thanked the Sokoto/Zamfara Area Command and the Customs Police Unit for their support in these successful operations.