By Tunde Olawuyi, Lagos

The Nigeria Customs Service, NCS, has delivered a major blow to illegal arms proliferation with the final coupling and examination of a massive arms haul seized at the Tin Can Island Port Command, uncovering 399 fully assembled Jojef pump-action firearms and a large cache of rifle parts.

The exercise, concluded on Sunday, August 9, 2026, followed the disclosure by the Comptroller-General of Customs, Adewale Adeniyi, on Thursday, August 6, that Customs had intercepted a container with concealed crates of knocked-down rifle components.

A detailed inventory of the seized items revealed: 399 Jojef rifles, 89 frames, 16 heat shields, 10 trigger pins, 3 pistons, 25 locking lugs, 80 charging handles, 39 pistol-grip screws, 34 springs, 57 trigger groups, 66 foregrip latches, 45 foregrips/handguards, 4 pistol grips and 5 barrels.

Speaking on the seizure, Adeniyi warned that criminal networks may attempt to exploit Nigeria’s borders, ports and airports ahead of the next general elections to smuggle prohibited items into the country.

“We are about entering a major election cycle and we know that by this period, men of the underworld will want to use our borders, our ports, our airports to bring in items like this. We are going to redouble our efforts to ensure that we do not allow them to do so,” the CGC said.

Adeniyi reaffirmed the Service’s commitment to intelligence-led enforcement, stronger border surveillance and collaboration with sister agencies, including the National Centre for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons, NCCSALW, under the Office of the National Security Adviser.

Following the completion of the inventory, the CGC said the NCS is preparing to hand over the seized armaments to NCCSALW. He stressed that the move underscores a unified inter-agency commitment to rid the streets of dangerous weapons and ensure those behind the trafficking network are tracked and prosecuted.

The Customs boss assured Nigerians that surveillance and enforcement operations would be intensified to safeguard national security while facilitating legitimate trade.