Court Convicts 10 Filipino Sailors, Seizes Vessel in $6m Nigeria Cocaine Bust

The Federal High Court in Lagos has convicted ten Filipino sailors and their vessel, MV Nord Bosporus, for their role in trafficking 20 kilograms of cocaine into Nigeria. The court imposed a combined penalty of $6 million and an additional N1.1 million on the crew and the ship.

The conviction follows their arrest on November 16, 2025, by operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) at the Apapa seaport. The illicit consignment was discovered onboard the vessel following its arrival from Santos, Brazil.

The convicted crew members are Eugene Quinos Corpuz; Mark Joseph Jardiniano; Alexis Navidad Evarrola; Francis Gerard Niones Carpio; Franz Jude Mayran; Mahinay Junniel Lagura; Mario Ganiban Malvar; Hormachuelos Lordito Guivencan; Joshua Emmanuel Hufanda; and Edwin Baltazar Reyes.

They were arraigned alongside their vessel on a four-count charge before Justice Ayokunle Faji. The defendants entered a guilty plea as part of a plea bargain agreement.

In his ruling on Wednesday, Justice Faji found the vessel guilty under Section 25 of the NDLEA Act. He ordered the ship to pay a fine of N100,000 and restitution of $5.35 million to the Federal Government.

The three principal officers of the vessel the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th defendants were each ordered to pay N100,000 and $100,000 in restitution. The remaining seven crew members were each fined N100,000 and directed to pay $50,000 in restitution.

Reacting to the judgment, NDLEA Chairman, Mohamed Buba Marwa, hailed the ruling as a major victory against international drug trafficking. He stated that the substantial financial penalty serves as a strong deterrent to global criminal networks.

“The imposition of a $6 million fine equally serves as a stark, expensive lesson to international drug cartels and their local collaborators that Nigeria’s territorial waters are no longer a playground for the illicit narcotics trade,” Marwa said.

He further warned shipping lines and sailors against using vessels for drug smuggling, stating that the agency is now focused on targeting the financial and operational assets of syndicates. Marwa commended the NDLEA’s Apapa Strategic Command for uncovering the cocaine, as well as the agency’s prosecution team and the judiciary for the swift handling of the case.

NDLEA spokesman, Femi Babafemi, reaffirmed the agency’s commitment to strengthening its intelligence network and operational capacity in the ongoing fight against illicit drugs.