From Atiku Sarki, Abuja
In a major crackdown on illegal wildlife trafficking, operatives of the Nigeria Customs Service have intercepted a 40-foot container loaded with over 10,000 donkey genitals along the Kaduna–Abuja Expressway.
Speaking during a press briefing on Thursday at the Customs Warehouse in Karu, Abuja, the National Public Relations Officer of the Service, Assistant Comptroller Abdullahi Maiwada, who represented the Comptroller-General of Customs, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, said the seizure was a product of coordinated surveillance by the Service’s Special Wildlife Office and the Customs Intelligence Unit.
He said the intercepted items have been handed over to the National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA) in line with inter-agency collaboration and statutory mandates.
“In recent years, the Nigeria Customs Service has scaled up its anti-wildlife trafficking operations through the establishment of the Special Wildlife Office (SWO), domiciled within the Customs Intelligence Unit. This specialised operation is saddled with intelligence gathering, profiling, investigation, and coordinated enforcement targeting transnational criminal networks that profit from the exploitation of endangered wildlife species,” Maiwada said.
He added that the Service’s operations have been strengthened through collaboration with partners such as the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), Focused Conservation, the Wildlife Justice Commission (WJC), and other national and international security agencies including the NDLEA, EFCC, the Nigeria Police, Interpol, and the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA).
“These partnerships have deepened intelligence sharing, leading to high-profile interceptions and successful prosecutions,” he noted.
Providing further details, Maiwada said that in the last one year, the SWO disrupted multiple illicit wildlife trafficking operations nationwide. These included the recovery of six African Grey Parrots and the arrest of one suspect in Kano on December 10, 2024, and the interception of two live pangolins, five Mona monkeys, two Tantalus monkeys, one baby baboon, and one African Grey Parrot at the Lagos Airport in May 2025.
“In another operation, we arrested one suspect in the Ikom area of Cross River State in connection with the seizure of 213 parrot heads, six eagle heads, 128 hornbill heads, and other exotic species,” he said.
Maiwada also revealed that on January 13, 2025, the Service handed over rescued tortoises to the National Park Service in Oyo State, adding that other seizures included life-sized lions, zebra hides, gorilla parts, and pangolin scales at various ports and routes across the country.
He disclosed that 120 African Grey Parrots were rescued and one suspect arrested in the Fufore area of Adamawa State in another incident.
“These figures underscore the scale, sophistication, and profitability of the illegal wildlife trade,” Maiwada said.
He warned that the Service considers wildlife trafficking a serious national issue with links to other organised crimes, including money laundering, arms smuggling, and illicit financial flows.
He assured that under the leadership of Comptroller-General Adeniyi, the Service will continue to invest in capacity building, digital surveillance, species identification, and cross-border enforcement.
“Our Wildlife Office’s investigations—including digital forensics and phone analysis—have strengthened our evidence base. Several prosecutions are already underway,” he added.
Maiwada urged members of the public, especially those in border communities and logistics hubs, to report suspicious wildlife product movements.
“The fight against wildlife crime requires sustained collaboration, vigilance, and an unyielding commitment to justice,” he said.
On his part, the Head of the Special Wildlife Office, Assistant Comptroller Anulu Samaila Mani, expressed gratitude for the progress recorded in recent months.
He revealed that between December 2024 and June 2025, the Service seized 6,087.9kg of pangolin scales, 4.15kg of processed ivory, 157 live African lovebirds, 3,002 donkey skins, 16 zebra skins, 37 taxidermies, and 10,603 donkey genitals, among other items.
Mani said over 10 suspects have been arrested in connection with the seizures, with one already convicted while others are awaiting trial.
“We remain committed to dismantling these criminal networks and protecting our nation’s biodiversity,” he added.