NCS Uncovers 1980s Drug Seizures During Warehouse Renovation In Kano,Hands Over To NDLEA
By Abdullahi Yusuf
The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has uncovered long-forgotten seizures of hard drugs dating back to 1986 and 1987 during a routine clearance and renovation of an old operations warehouse that has been in use since the 1980s.
The Comptroller-General of Customs, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, made this known while addressing journalists in Kano on Thursday.
Adeniyi explained that the discovery was made when officers encountered a locked cabinet that had been transferred from one generation of Customs controllers to another, with no key available and no clear record of its contents.
He disclosed that the matter was reported to him in Abuja, and directed that safety checks be carried out to ensure the cabinet did not contain explosive materials.
Following confirmation by police operatives that the cabinet posed no explosive risk, approval was given for it to be forced open, he said.
“When the cabinet was opened, we discovered seizures of hard drugs that were made in 1986 and 1987 and kept in custody all these years,” Adeniyi said.
Items recovered from the cabinet included six blocks and three slabs of cannabis sativa weighing a total of 16.4 kilogrammes, which tested positive following preliminary analysis conducted with the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA).
Also found were 52,168 capsules of quinal barbitone sodium (100mg) with a total weight of 14.6 kilogrammes. While initial field tests were inconclusive, forensic reports indicate the capsules are not ordinary substances.
In addition, permuline tablets weighing 246 grammes tested positive, while a whitish substance weighing about 2.7 kilogrammes tested negative on the field and has been referred for further forensic examination.
Customs officers also recovered two parcels weighing 220.01 grammes which tested positive for heroin.
The official noted that the seizures were made decades before the establishment of the NDLEA, explaining why the items remained under Customs custody for over 30 years.
“Our exhibit management has improved significantly over the years, but it is instructive that these items were kept safely under lock and key even before the NDLEA was established,” he said.
“Now that the appropriate agency exists, we are formally transferring custody to them to continue with investigations and further testing.”
However,Deputy Commander operation and training Bello Garba Jabo,represented the state commander, NDLEA Kano strategic command ,Dahiru Yahyah Lawal
commended the Nigeria Customs Service for preserving the seized drugs over several decades and for the cooperation shown in handing them over.
He noted that although the substances may have lost potency over time, they would still undergo comprehensive testing in line with NDLEA procedures.
He added that the agency would not attempt to place a current monetary value on the drugs, given changes in market conditions over the years.
The handover marks the end of a decades-long custody of the seized drugs by Customs and underscores ongoing collaboration between enforcement agencies in tackling drug-related crimes in the country.