Live African Grey Parrots, Green Parrots, and a hawk, all of which are endangered species, were seized by the Nigeria Customs Service’s Seme Area Command for a total of around N6,859,832.
On Wednesday, Comptroller Timi Bomodi, the Customs Area Controller, made this known.
He said that reliable intelligence had been used to support the seizure.
At the Gbaji border on their way to the Benin Republic, the animals were stopped.
He said,
“These animals were intercepted by our officers at about 4 am today; we got the intelligence that they were being conveyed in a luxurious bus all the way from Kaduna to Lagos, with the intention to take them out of the country to sell.
“As you may be aware, this is an illicit trade of endangered species, they are valued outside the country and we have individuals that are ready to go through a lot of risks to smuggle these birds.”
Bomodi restated the commitment of the Nigeria Customs Service to curb the menace of illicit trade in the country while also noting that two suspects were arrested in connection with the seizure.
“Part of the responsibilities of the Nigeria Customs Service as a signatory to the convention on illicit trade in endangered species is to ensure trade like this does not continue and we are hell-bent on seeing that things of this nature are not circulated.
“We already have two suspects in our custody, and the normal procedure for activating seizures of this nature with special regard to how these defendants will be treated is already in place”, he emphasized.
Sanusi Magashi, the Controller of the Nigerian Agricultural Quarantine Services, received the confiscated animals.
The animals will be temporarily protected and cared for by the Nigeria Agricultural Quarantine Services before being released into the national park.