By Our Correspondent
National News – The Nigeria Customs Service has intercepted and recovered several stolen luxury vehicles smuggled from Canada into Nigeria through Tin Can Island Port in Lagos.
The vehicles, including Rolls-Royce, Lamborghini, Mercedes-Benz and Range Rover models, were officially handed over to Canadian authorities after months of intelligence sharing between Nigerian officials and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.
The recovery operation was confirmed by the National Public Relations Officer of the Nigeria Customs Service, Abdullahi Maiwada, in a statement released on Sunday.
According to Customs, the stolen vehicles were traced from Canada to Nigeria through international shipping routes used by organised vehicle theft syndicates.
Among the recovered automobiles were a 2019 Lexus RX350, a 2019 Mercedes-Benz G550, a 2023 Land Rover Range Rover, a 2019 Lamborghini Huracán, a 2021 Rolls-Royce Dawn Convertible, a 2018 Lamborghini Aventador and a 2026 Toyota Tundra.
Authorities said all the vehicles had been stolen abroad before being illegally exported to Nigeria.
The handover ceremony took place at Tin Can Island Port on May 4, 2026, where Canada’s Deputy High Commissioner to Nigeria, Nasser Salihou, received the recovered vehicles from the Customs Area Controller, Comptroller Frank Onyeka.
Onyeka revealed that one of the vehicles, a Toyota Tacoma, was hidden inside a container carrying other vehicles.
He explained that Customs officers immediately placed the shipment under surveillance after receiving intelligence reports from Canadian authorities.
The Customs boss said the operation demonstrated Nigeria’s growing capacity to fight transnational organised crime, cargo fraud and stolen vehicle trafficking.
He added that stronger collaboration between Nigeria and Canada helped officers track and recover the vehicles before they entered the local market.
Security experts have warned that African ports are increasingly targeted by international car theft networks due to the high demand for luxury automobiles.
However, Nigerian authorities insist that improved cargo profiling, intelligence gathering and maritime enforcement are strengthening security at the nation’s seaports.
