The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has intercepted a 40-foot container filled with donkey genitals in a major crackdown on illegal wildlife trafficking. The seizure, made along the Kaduna-Abuja Expressway, highlights the growing challenge of illicit trade in endangered species and animal parts.
The Comptroller-General of Customs, Mr. Adewale Adeniyi, disclosed the operation during a press briefing in Abuja yesterday. Represented by the National Public Relations Officer, Mr. Abdullahi Maiwada, Adeniyi confirmed that the consignment was intercepted following credible intelligence.
“On Friday, 5 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,” Maiwada stated.
“The interception was carried out under coordinated surveillance by officers of the SWO (Special Wildlife Office) and CIU (Customs Intelligence Unit), further confirming the persistence of illegal wildlife trafficking networks in exploiting Nigeria’s corridors,” he added.
After thorough documentation, the seized items were handed over to the National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA) in compliance with inter-agency collaboration protocols.
The Comptroller-General emphasized that this was not an isolated incident, revealing that the NCS has disrupted multiple wildlife smuggling operations in the past year.
“Over the past 12 months, the Special Wildlife Office has uncovered and disrupted multiple illicit wildlife trafficking operations across the country,” Adeniyi said.
“Noteworthy among these include the recovery of six African Grey Parrots and the arrest of one suspect on 10 December 2024 in Kano, as well as 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.”
Other major seizures include:
-213 parrot heads, six eagle heads, and 128 hornbill heads intercepted in Cross River State.
-119.4 kg of pangolin scales. concealed in sacks in Calabar.
-120 African Grey Parrots rescued in Adamawa State, with one suspect arrested.
The NCS also reported cases involving taxidermy specimens, such as lions, zebra hides, and gorilla parts, smuggled through ports and logistics routes.
The Customs boss reaffirmed the agency’s commitment to combating wildlife trafficking, stressing collaboration with environmental and law enforcement agencies.
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