Nigeria Customs seizes N5.53bn in contraband at Onne Port

The Nigeria Customs Service Port Harcourt Area II Command has seized 56 containers filled with contraband goods at Onne Port in Rivers State. The seized items, which include vegetable oil, used clothing, and foreign tomato paste, have a combined duty-paid value of N5.53bn.

According to Comptroller-General of Customs Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, the goods were illegally imported through the Onne Free Trade Zone by concealing them under declarations for machinery and spare parts. Adeniyi noted that importers are exploiting federal government concessions intended to facilitate manufacturing and local production by diverting restricted goods into the local market.

The Customs Service is currently reviewing operations for goods destined for free trade and economic zones following intelligence and risk-based analysis that revealed widespread abuse of these incentives.