Cyril Ogar

A complex and well-organised smuggling network involving personnel of key Nigerian security agencies including the Army, Police, and the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) is allegedly generating between ₦4 billion and ₦6 billion every week, according to insider accounts from the Seme–Badagry and Idi Iroko border corridors.

According to Sahara Reporters Investigation reveal that this racket allegedly enables hundreds of truckloads of foreign rice, used vehicles, and other contraband to flow into Lagos and surrounding states through the Benin Republic border, with the full knowledge and protection of security officers stationed to enforce Nigeria’s customs and border laws.

Members of the Union of Pioneers Association, a coalition comprising over 3,000 long-time border operators and local smugglers, told SaharaReporters that despite being the operators on the ground, they have been sidelined and impoverished by a powerful cartel protected by senior officers across different security formations.

They allege that while they handle the risks, logistics, and border runs, the real financial benefits are cornered by military and customs operatives, as well as a small circle of cartel leaders. 
One member described the situation as a “criminal empire run in uniform.”

“The leader has no vehicle, yet he takes returns from every trip. His profits keep multiplying while the original indigenes who have worked these borders for decades cannot boast of a single investment,” a member said.

Sources according to Sahara Reporters allege that a single influential coordinator now controls the major channels of smuggling along the Seme–Badagry stretch. The individual is reportedly backed by officers of: The Nigerian Army, Nigeria Customs Service and the Police.

This protection allegedly ensures that all goods passing through the corridor are pre-cleared after settlement, while heavily armed security escorts accompany the contraband to warehouses in Lagos with little risk of interception.

Despite a series of internal meetings and interventions—including one said to involve a prominent Yoruba traditional ruler efforts by the indigenous group to form a new team that would allow them fair participation in the trade have reportedly been blocked.

“They keep delaying because any new team would reduce the money they make,” another union leader lamented.

Multiple sources supplied accounts suggesting that military personnel from two major formations in Badagry are frequently redeployed not to enforce border restrictions, but to escort smuggled vehicles, rice, and other prohibited goods into the country.

One source said that as recently as the previous day, soldiers were seen supervising loading operations in the axis after a clearance agreement had been reached with customs personnel.

“The Army is supposed to defend Nigeria’s territorial integrity, yet they are the ones escorting smuggled goods. What is happening here runs into billions,” a source said.

Senior officers, both serving and retired, are reportedly involved in ensuring that the syndicate operates without interference.

Although operations in Lagos have been curtailed and access restricted to cartel-linked operators, at least seven border crossings in Ogun State remain active, providing alternative smuggling routes into the country. Trucks reportedly operate freely across these smaller corridors with minimal inspection or obstruction.

“Ogun is booming. If you are not part of the cartel, Lagos is a dead zone for you,” one operator revealed.

With the approach of December traditionally one of the most lucrative periods for smuggling due to increased demand for foreign rice and festive goods members of the Pioneers say they were summoned for yet another meeting this week, only to be told once again that their new team would not be approved.

They now accuse the security agencies of deliberately blocking them to allow the cartel fully monopolise the highly profitable Christmas smuggling window.

Frustrated by years of failed negotiations, the group is reportedly preparing a petition to the National Security Adviser, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, demanding a full investigation into what they describe as a multibillion-naira criminal enterprise run in collaboration with security personnel.

According to the petition’s architects, the involvement of members of the Army, Police, and Customs in escorting illegal goods is proof that the country’s border security system has been deeply compromised.

They argue that the situation, if left unchecked, poses a serious threat to National security, Nigeria’s economy, The credibility of law enforcement and the livelihoods of border-area communities.

As pressure mounts and allegations multiply, the unfolding scandal paints a disturbing picture of institutional corruption and entrenched criminality at Nigeria’s international borders.

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