NCS scales up anti-wildlife trafficking operations, seize container of donkey genitals
Omeiza Bilal
The Nigeria Customs Service has scaled up its anti-wildlife trafficking operations in recent years through the establishment of the Special Wildlife Office (SWO), domiciled within the Customs Intelligence Unit (CIU).
The Service has also handed over variety of donkey genitals intercepted by its SWO to the National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESRA) in Abuja
The Comptroller — General of the Nigeria Customs Service, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi disclosed this Thursday in Abuja while briefing Journalists on the seizure and handover of donkey genitals intercepted by its Special Wildlife Office Unit.
Adeniyi, who was represented by the NCS National Public Relations Officer, Assistant Comptroller of Customs, Abdullahi Maiwada, said the specialized operation is saddled with intelligence gathering, profiling, investigation, and coordinated enforcement targeting transnational criminal networks that profit from the exploitation of endangered wildlife species.
According to the service, support from local and international partners, the SWO has recorded commendable success. While working in active partnership with the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), that has provided dedicated warehouses in selected locations across Nigeria for secure storage of intercepted specimens
The Customs boss said to achieve the feat, the Service similarly collaborated with Focus Conservation, the Wildlife Justice Commission (WJC), and maintains joint task force engagements with key domestic and international security agencies, including NDLEA, EFCC, Nigeria Police Force, Interpol, as well as the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA), among others.
He stressed that these partnerships have deepened intelligence sharing, leading to high profile interceptions and successful prosecutions.
“In line with these efforts, I am pleased to inform you that on Friday, 5th June 2025, at approximately 2100 hours, operatives of the Nigeria Customs Service acting on credible intelligence intercepted a 1x40ft container loaded with donkey genitals along the Kaduna–Abuja Expressway.
“The interception was carried out under coordinated surveillance by officers of the SWO and CIU, further confirming the persistence of illegal wildlife trafficking networks in exploiting Nigeria’s corridors, after proper documentation and compliance with procedure, the seized items will be officially handed over today, 10th of July to the National Environmental standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA) at the NCS Government Warehouse in Karu, Abuja, in line with our commitment to inter-agency collaboration and statutory mandates, this seizure is not an isolated incident.
“Over the past 12 months, the Special Wildlife Office has uncovered and disrupted multiple illicit wildlife trafficking operations across the country., noteworthy among these include the recovery of six African Grey Parrots and the arrest of one suspect on 10 December 2024 at Kano, the interception of two live pangolins, five Mona monkeys, two Tantalus monkeys, one baby baboon and an African Grey Parrot at Lagos Airport in May 2025.
“In another separate operation, there was an arrest of one suspect in Ikom area of Cross River State linked to seizures of 213 parrot heads, six eagle heads, 128 hornbill heads, and other exotic species, on 13 January 2025, the Service handed over rescued tortoises to the National Park Service in Oyo State. Several seizures involving taxidermy specimens, such as life-sized lions, zebra hides, gorilla parts, and pangolin scales have been recorded in various ports and logistics routes nationwide,” he explained.
He added, that one such case involved 119.4kg of pangolin scales found in a container concealed in sacks around Calabar area of Cross-River.
