A Federal High Court in Lagos has ordered the detention of a merchant vessel and 21 crew members after operatives seized 25.5 kilograms of cocaine hidden aboard a ship from Brazil, the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) said Wednesday.
The drugs were found at the Apapa seaport on 6 December.
NDLEA operatives took the crew — nationals of Russia, the Philippines, Ukraine and Azerbaijan — into custody after the ship, identified as MV San Anthonio, completed cargo discharge.
The agency said the crew included the ship’s master, Trofymov Oleksandr.
The detention request was filed ex-parte on 12 December before Justice Frida N. Ogazi.
In court the judge ordered that “the Vessel MV San Antonio … be detained for fourteen days (14) in the first instance following the seizure of 25.5 kilograms of cocaine … pending the conclusion of investigation and or filing of criminal charge and prosecution.”
The matter was adjourned to 29 December for further proceedings.
The NDLEA said the seizure follows a similar interception on 16 November when officers found about 20 kilograms of cocaine aboard another Brazil-bound vessel, MV Nord Bosporus.
The agency said the back-to-back operations show growing enforcement at Apapa.
NDLEA Chairman Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (rtd) praised the Apapa command and warned traffickers they will not get a foothold in Nigeria.
He said the latest seizure “is no doubt a testament to NDLEA’s heightened capacity and unwavering resolve to frustrate the drug syndicates targeting the West African sub-region especially Nigeria.”
The agency said it will keep working with local and international partners to tackle illicit trafficking.
Anyone with information about the case was asked to contact the NDLEA as investigations continue.
