₦82.1m Smuggled Goods Seized in Bauchi as Customs Intensifies Patrols

The Federal Operations Unit, Zone ‘D’, Bauchi, of the Nigeria Customs Service has seized smuggled goods with a duty paid value of ₦82.1m within two weeks.

The Zone Comptroller, Abdullahi Kaila, disclosed this on Friday during a media briefing in Bauchi, saying the seizures were made between December 8 and 19, 2025, by officers of the unit’s anti-smuggling team.

Kaila explained that the Federal Operations Unit is responsible for enforcing Customs laws, implementing government fiscal policies and suppressing smuggling activities across nine states, including Adamawa, Taraba, Bauchi, Gombe, Borno, Yobe, Plateau, Benue and Nasarawa.

He recalled that upon assuming duty two weeks ago, he pledged zero tolerance for smuggling in the zone, adding that the recent seizures reflected the unit’s resolve to translate words into action.

According to him, items intercepted and seized during the period include 15,100 litres of Premium Motor Spirit, 34 bales and six sacks of second-hand clothing, 150 cartons of foreign spaghetti, 80 sacks of used shoes, 390 jerrycans of vegetable oil and 20 cartons of foreign washing soap.

“The cumulative duty paid value of all the seized items stands at Eighty-Two Million, One Hundred and Fourteen Thousand, Five Hundred and Sixty-Seven Naira only (₦82,114,567),” he said.

The comptroller noted that the relatively low incidence of smuggling recorded during the period, particularly in illegal trade involving wildlife, controlled drugs, narcotics and PMS, was due to intensified patrols, intelligence-driven enforcement and the professionalism of officers and men of the unit.