NDLEA Seizes 20kg of Cocaine On Brazil-Bound MV Nord Bosporus At Apapa Seaport
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has intercepted 20 kilograms of cocaine aboard the Brazil-bound vessel MV Nord Bosporus (IMO 9760110) at Lagos’ Apapa seaport.
The illegal substance was discovered concealed under the ship’s cargo on Sunday, November 16, 2025. Following the seizure, NDLEA detained the vessel’s Master, Captain Quino Eugene Corpus, along with 19 Filipino crew members.
NDLEA spokesman Femi Babafemi said the agency obtained a court order to hold the ship and crew for further investigation.
“The motion ex parte in suit number FHC/L/MISC/1306/25 was presented before Justice Musa Kakaki of the Federal High Court, Lagos, who on Thursday, November 20, 2025, approved an initial 14-day detention of the vessel, Captain Corpus, and the 19 Filipino crew members,” Babafemi explained.
Preliminary investigations revealed that the MV Nord Bosporus was visiting Nigeria and Africa for the first time, having primarily transported coal between Colombia and Brazil. Captain Corpus has reportedly been with the vessel for just three months.
This seizure follows a similar case six months ago when 10 Thai sailors aboard the MV Chayanee Naree were convicted for attempting to smuggle 32.9 kilograms of cocaine from Brazil through Apapa seaport. The sailors and vessel were fined $4.3 million by the Federal High Court in Lagos on May 15, 2025.
NDLEA Chairman Brigadier General Buba Marwa (retd.) commended the Apapa Command and the Directorate of Seaport Operations for the successful operation, calling it evidence of the agency’s growing capacity to secure Nigeria’s borders.
Marwa warned international drug cartels and their local collaborators that Nigeria will not be used as a transit point for illegal drugs, emphasizing the agency’s zero-tolerance policy.
He also cautioned Nigerians involved with foreign syndicates, saying they would face strict legal consequences.
Between January 2023 and March 2024, the NDLEA reportedly seized a total of 207,976 kilograms of hard drugs across the country’s seaports. In the first quarter of 2024, 14 suspects were arrested with 16.69 kilograms of cocaine and 11,622.229 kilograms of cannabis sativa, while a total of 167 people were arrested with 196,336.99 kilograms of various drugs from January to October 2023.
