The Nigeria Customs Service, Kebbi Area Command, has handed over consignments of toxic agricultural herbicides, Cannabis sativa and live ammunition seized from illicit circulation to relevant regulatory and security agencies.
The items, handed over at the Command Headquarters in Birnin Kebbi on October 8, 2026, included 6,109 cartons of agricultural herbicides, 330 wraps of suspected Cannabis sativa, 37 rounds of AK-47 live ammunition and 12 cartridges for a pump-action firearm.
The herbicides, handed over to the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), comprised 500 cartons of Rezim Herbicide, 708 cartons of Gramosun, 1,291 cartons of Sun-Paraquat, 1,990 cartons of Gbeledzo and 1,620 cartons of Gramostrong.
NAFDAC inspection found that the products contained active agents that made them highly toxic and potentially harmful to human health and the environment. The consignments had a combined Duty Paid Value of ₦223.05 million.
The Customs Command also transferred the 330 wraps of suspected Cannabis sativa, with a stated Duty Paid Value of ₦2.52 million, to the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA).
The 37 rounds of AK-47 ammunition and 12 pump-action firearm cartridges were handed over to the National Centre for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons (NCCSALW) for appropriate statutory action.
Speaking during the handover, the Customs Area Controller, Comptroller Mahmoud Matawalle, said sustained collaboration among law enforcement, regulatory and security agencies was essential to tackling the movement of harmful substances, controlled drugs, arms and ammunition.
He said the seizures demonstrated the Customs Service’s efforts to protect public health, safeguard national security, promote regulatory compliance and prevent prohibited and harmful items from entering the distribution chain.
The Kebbi State Commander of the NDLEA, Rabiu Abdullahi Sokoto, commended the Customs Command for its continued cooperation in combating illicit drugs and controlled substances.
Sokoto said the handover was not the first between the two agencies, noting that Customs had previously transferred similar seizures to the NDLEA. He added that the agency had also invited Customs officials to witness the destruction of seized illicit drugs on previous occasions as part of efforts to promote transparency and accountability.
The NAFDAC Kebbi State Coordinator, Muyideen Suleiman, described the herbicide seizure as significant, saying it represented the largest seizure handed over by the Kebbi Customs Command to the agency’s Kebbi office and one of the largest received by NAFDAC in the North-West Zone.
He commended Customs for its collaboration in preventing the circulation of harmful, unapproved and potentially hazardous agricultural products and called for sustained cooperation against the importation and distribution of substandard, falsified and unapproved regulated products.
Representing the Zonal Director of the NCCSALW, Captain Iliya Dauda (Rtd.) commended the Customs Command for intercepting and handing over the live ammunition, saying the action underscored the importance of inter-agency cooperation in curbing the illicit movement of arms and ammunition.
The exercise concluded with the signing of handover notes and the formal transfer of the seized items to the respective agencies for further statutory action.