Olusegun ARIYO
The Nigeria Customs Service, NCS, has intercepted and recovered seven luxury vehicles allegedly stolen from Canada at the Tin Can Island Port in Lagos.
According to an internal Customs document dated May 5, 2026, the recovered vehicles include a 2019 Lexus RX350, 2019 Mercedes-Benz G550, 2023 Land Rover Range Rover, 2019 Lamborghini Huracán, 2021 Rolls-Royce Dawn Convertible, 2018 Lamborghini Aventador and a 2026 Toyota Tundra.
The Customs Service disclosed that all the vehicles were confirmed to have been stolen in Canada before being illegally exported and shipped into Nigeria.
In a statement made available to journalists on Sunday, the agency said the interception formed part of ongoing efforts to strengthen international collaboration against smuggling and transnational vehicle theft.
Speaking during the handover of the recovered vehicles to the Deputy High Commissioner of Canada to Nigeria, Frank Onyeka, the Customs Area Controller of Tin Can Island Command, said the operation was made possible through intelligence sharing and joint collaboration between the NCS and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.
According to him, Canadian authorities had earlier traced several stolen luxury vehicles believed to have been smuggled into Nigeria through international shipping channels.
Onyeka revealed that one of the intercepted vehicles, identified as a Toyota Tacoma, was hidden inside a container transporting other vehicles and had not yet been cleared from Customs custody when intelligence reports from Canada prompted immediate action.
“What looked like a routine cargo movement quickly became an international criminal investigation. Once intelligence reached us, we placed the consignment under enforcement watch and secured the vehicle pending confirmation from Canadian authorities,” he said.
He explained that after receiving official shipping documents and intelligence alerts from Canadian authorities, officers at the command swiftly isolated the suspicious container and placed the vehicle under enforcement custody pending diplomatic verification.
The Customs boss added that the agency deliberately delayed the release of the recovered vehicles until officials of the Canadian government personally arrived to complete the identification and recovery process.
“We had people who wanted to step in on behalf of others, but this was too sensitive. We insisted the handover must be directly to the Canadian government to preserve the integrity of the process,” Onyeka added.
He stated that the operation demonstrated the determination of the Nigeria Customs Service to combat international vehicle theft syndicates exploiting global maritime routes for illegal activities.
The controller further noted that the successful recovery highlighted the growing cooperation between Nigeria and Canada in intelligence exchange, cargo profiling and maritime enforcement aimed at tackling cross-border crimes, illicit trade and fraudulent transactions.
