LAGOS, Nigeria — Nigerian authorities have handed over a fleet of stolen luxury vehicles, including Lamborghinis and a Rolls-Royce, to Canadian officials following a major breakthrough against a transnational theft syndicate.
The vehicles were intercepted at the Tin Can Island Port in Lagos after a months-long intelligence operation between the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. The recovery is being hailed as a significant victory in the fight against international car-smuggling networks that use global shipping lanes to move illicit cargo.
A ‘Galaxy’ of Exotic Brands
The recovered fleet represents some of the most expensive automobiles on the market. According to internal Customs documents, the intercepted vehicles included:
- Supercars: A 2019 Lamborghini Huracán and a 2018 Lamborghini Aventador.
- Luxury Cruisers: A 2021 Rolls-Royce Dawn Convertible and a 2023 Land Rover Range Rover.
- High-End SUVs and Trucks: A Mercedes-Benz G550 and a 2026 Toyota Tundra.
The Deputy High Commissioner of Canada to Nigeria, Nasser Salihou, formally received the vehicles from Comptroller Frank Onyeka during a ceremony at the port on Monday.
Hidden in Plain Sight
The operation began when Canadian authorities alerted Nigeria to several high-end vehicles that had been stolen in Canada and were believed to be bound for Lagos.
Comptroller Onyeka revealed that the smugglers had gone to great lengths to disguise the cars. In one instance, a vehicle was “secretly concealed” inside a container filled with other automobiles.
“What looked like a routine cargo movement quickly became an international criminal investigation,” Mr. Onyeka said. He added that Customs officers deliberately delayed the release of the suspicious containers, ignoring third-party attempts to claim them, to ensure the vehicles were handed back directly to the Canadian government.
Nigeria’s Anti-Smuggling Push
The Nigeria Customs Service stated that the operation was part of a broader effort to strengthen international confidence in the country’s maritime enforcement.
“Criminal syndicates are increasingly using global shipping networks to disguise stolen vehicles as legitimate cargo,” the service said in a statement. The success of the sting is seen as a sign of Nigeria’s improving capacity for cargo profiling and its deepening security ties with Western partners.
Security experts have long warned that African ports are frequent targets for car theft rings due to high demand for exotic brands. However, officials in Abuja insist that the “Tin Can sting” sends a clear message that Nigerian waters are no longer a safe haven for organised cross-border crime.
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