Photo Credit: The Sun Nigeria / NCCSALW
NSA Has No Link to Tin Can Arms Importation – NCCSALW DG Kokumo

The Director-General of the National Centre for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons (NCCSALW), DIG Johnson Kokumo (rtd.), has debunked a viral video alleging that suspects arrested over the illegal arms seizure at Tin Can Island Port were sponsored by the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu.

Speaking on Tuesday in Abuja at the joint security spokespersons’ briefing, Kokumo described the claim as false and baseless.

He confirmed that he was personally present at the Tin Can Island Port when the Nigeria Customs Service handed over the intercepted weapons to the Centre.

According to him, 399 assorted automatic weapons were intercepted by the Nigeria Customs Service at the port and formally handed over to the Centre,.
“The story in the video is not correct and cannot be correct… I was not there in a representative capacity; I was there personally. And the Comptroller-General, of course, was also present personally to do the handing over,” Kokumo said.
He disclosed that the seized arms are currently secured in an armoury, while two suspects arrested in connection with the illegal importation are still in custody as investigations continue. The investigation, he said, is aimed at prosecuting the criminal elements in Nigeria and identifying their international partners.

Kokumo noted that the viral video also incited violence against the NSA, adding that such allegations are unfounded.

On arms destruction, the NCCSALW boss said the Federal Government has sustained the public destruction of recovered illicit weapons to prevent them from falling back into the hands of non-state actors, in line with international conventions under the United Nations, African Union and ECOWAS.

He revealed that at the Second Quarter Arms Destruction Exercise for 2026 held on July 30 at the Muhammadu Buhari Cantonment, Giri, Abuja, 1,419 illicit weapons were destroyed, bringing the cumulative figure since 2022 to over 19,000.

He added that the Centre in June 2026 received 5,050 illicit, unserviceable and obsolete weapons from the Nigeria Police Force.

Kokumo clarified that the government is not targeting legitimate local gun makers, such as traditional hunters using dane guns, but is focused on criminal manufacturers producing sophisticated illicit weapons for terrorism, banditry and kidnapping.
Source: The Sun Nigeria –