The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has intercepted a Brazil-bound vessel, MV Nord Bosporus (IMO 9760110), at the Apapa seaport in Lagos with 20 kilogrammes of cocaine concealed beneath its cargo.
According to a statement issued on Friday by NDLEA spokesperson Femi Babafemi, the illicit consignment was discovered last Sunday by officers of the agency. The ship’s master, Captain Quino Eugene Corpus, and 19 other Filipino crew members were immediately taken into custody for investigation.
Following the arrests, the agency approached the Federal High Court in Lagos for an order to detain the vessel and crew. Justice Musa Kakaki on Thursday granted an initial 14-day detention order in suit number FHC/L/MISC/1306/25.
Preliminary findings indicated that this was the ship’s first voyage to Nigeria or any African port. The vessel had reportedly been shuttling between Brazil and Colombia transporting coal, and Captain Corpus had spent only three months onboard.
The NDLEA noted that the latest seizure comes barely six months after 10 Thai sailors and their ship, MV Chayanee Naree, were convicted and fined $4.3 million for smuggling 32.9 kilogrammes of cocaine from Brazil through the same Apapa port. Nine Nigerian collaborators were also arrested in that 2021 operation, with the crew convicted on May 15, 2025, by Justice Daniel Osiagor of the Federal High Court.
Reacting to the latest interception, NDLEA Chairman/Chief Executive, Brig. Gen. Buba Marwa (rtd), praised officers at the Apapa Strategic Command and the Directorate of Seaport Operations for their “vigilance, diligence and professionalism.” He described the seizure as evidence of the agency’s enhanced operational capacity and firm resolve to secure the nation’s borders.
Marwa warned international cartels and their local collaborators that Nigeria would not serve as a transit point for illicit drugs. “Our message is unambiguous: Nigeria is not, and will never be, your space or foothold,” he said. He cautioned Nigerians aiding foreign drug syndicates that they are “betraying the nation’s future” and would face severe legal consequences.
The vessel and the detained crew remain in NDLEA custody pending further investigation.
