A Disturbing Pattern of Violence
A stray bullet pierced the safety of Elizabeth Hunsu’s home in Badagry on November 7. The 42-year-old woman was resting in her bedroom when a bullet, fired by a Nigerian Customs Service officer, struck her arm. While she survived, the incident highlights a troubling trend.
The shooting occurred during a chase of smugglers in the community. Tensions escalated as angry youths set fire to the Customs checkpoint in Igbogbele, protesting the incident. This is not an isolated case; innocent citizens often become victims of operations intended to secure the country’s borders. Such incidents reveal a deeply flawed system.
Over the years, border communities like Seme, Idiroko, Ipokia, Imeko, and Owode have suffered from this recklessness. Stray bullets from Customs personnel have caused deaths and injuries, including among children. This pattern must end.
Smuggling, a criminal activity that costs Nigeria millions annually, needs to be eradicated. However, it should not come at the cost of innocent lives.
Economic Impact of Smuggling
The economic damage caused by smuggling is immense. In 2019, Nigeria reportedly lost N2 billion daily due to petrol smuggling alone. Additional losses amounted to $1.19 billion from textile materials smuggled in each year.
Smugglers are drawn to the lucrative trade, as goods from neighboring countries can be sold for more than double their cost price in Nigeria. In 2023, the NCS seized contraband worth N16 trillion.
Smuggling undermines legitimate trade, evades tariffs, and floods markets with counterfeit goods. Current tactics, such as high-speed chases through crowded areas, turn anti-smuggling efforts into public hazards.
Dangerous Tactics and Unnecessary Risks
Smugglers often carry sophisticated weapons, making shootouts dangerous for civilians. This outdated approach has led to numerous tragedies.
In May 2025, a police stray bullet killed a West African Senior School Certificate Examination candidate in Ibadan while officers pursued a traffic offender. Similarly, in June 2021, Alade Oba, an SS3 student, was killed by gunfire during a confrontation between security agents and rice smugglers.
Numerous other cases show how innocent lives are lost. Children playing in yards, market women, and families asleep in their homes have fallen victim to stray bullets.
Human rights organizations, including Amnesty International, have documented dozens of such deaths over the past decade. In one tragic event in 2019, a Customs operation in Ogun State left two toddlers dead after agents fired at a fleeing vehicle that entered a playground.
These are not just numbers; they represent real lives—mothers, students, breadwinners—lost in the name of border security.
Outdated Methods and Their Consequences
The root cause of these incidents lies in the tactics used by anti-smuggling personnel. They operate with methods reminiscent of colonial-era enforcement, chasing suspects through densely populated areas. This is ineffective and counterproductive.
Smugglers deliberately lead pursuits into crowds, using humans as shields. Agents then fire wildly, prioritizing capture over safety. In an age of satellite imagery and AI-driven analytics, why resort to 19th-century tactics?
This reckless culture peaked under former Comptroller-General Hameed Ali, whose military background influenced Customs operations. He treated smugglers as enemy combatants rather than economic criminals.
During his tenure, innocent deaths increased. In 2018 alone, at least 15 civilians were reportedly killed in stray bullet incidents across border states. Ali defended these as “unavoidable collateral” but critics argued it reflected poor training and disregard for lives.
Smugglers rarely faced justice; many were gunned down extrajudicially, denying the state evidence for prosecution. Even when arrested, convictions were rare. His approach failed to disrupt smuggling networks.
A New Era for the Nigerian Customs Service
The current Comptroller-General, Adewale Adeniyi, who took office in 2023, must avoid repeating these mistakes. As a career Customs officer known for reform, he has both the opportunity and obligation to improve operations.
His officers must not shed another drop of innocent blood. Smugglers deserve due process: arrest, investigation, and prosecution in courts, not summary execution in the streets.
Adeniyi must find new ways to combat smuggling. The era of vehicular pursuits through residential neighborhoods and bustling markets must end.
Modern Solutions for a Modern Problem
In 2025, Nigeria cannot afford primitive tactics. Instead, it must invest in technology and intelligence. Acquiring and deploying modern aerial surveillance tools, such as drones equipped with high-resolution cameras, can monitor vast border stretches in real-time.
For larger operations, leasing or purchasing light aircraft for persistent surveillance over hotspots like the Benin-Nigeria corridor could prove effective. Countries like the United States and Israel have successfully used such tools to interdict cartels without endangering civilians.
Ground-based innovations, such as advanced scanners and sniffer dogs trained to detect contraband, offer non-lethal detection. Training is crucial; the NCS must shift from kinetic pursuits to data-driven operations.
Establishing joint task forces with the military, police, and immigration, with strict protocols prohibiting firing in populated areas, is essential. Rules of engagement must mandate de-escalation and the use of non-lethal weapons in urban settings.
Addressing Broader Issues
Broader questions remain. Why do arms still slip through borders, and why is illegally mined gold from Zamfara and Osun states regularly smuggled out? These failures point to porous controls and possible collusion.
Accusations of security forces tipping off smugglers or accepting bribes are common in border communities. Whistleblowers have alleged that some officers act as escorts for contraband convoys.
Under Adeniyi, this must stop. Implementing zero-tolerance policies, independent audits, and body cameras for operatives is critical. Partnering with international agencies like Interpol for intelligence sharing can help.
Sealing unofficial routes with physical barriers and regulating cross-border trade can reduce incentives for smuggling. Smuggling sets Nigeria back economically, but reckless enforcement erodes public trust and human rights.
The NCS under Adeniyi can lead by example: crushing networks through precision, not pandemonium.
