Court Convicts 10 Filipino Sailors, Vessel Over Cocaine Trafficking, Imposes $6m Fine

Ten Filipino sailors and their merchant vessel, MV Nord Bosporus, have been convicted by a Federal High Court in Lagos over the trafficking of 20 kilograms of cocaine into Nigeria.
The court also imposed a total fine of six million dollars, alongside an additional penalty of one million, one hundred thousand naira.
The sailors and the vessel were arrested in November 2025 by operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) at the Apapa seaport in Lagos, following the discovery of the cocaine concealed within cargo imported from Santos, Brazil.
They were subsequently charged on four counts by NDLEA prosecutors and later entered a guilty plea under a plea bargain agreement.
Delivering judgment, Justice Ayokunle Faji found the vessel guilty under the NDLEA Act and ordered it to pay a monetary penalty as well as substantial restitution to the Federal Government.
The three principal officers of the vessel were each fined and ordered to pay one hundred thousand dollars in restitution, while the remaining crew members were also fined and directed to pay fifty thousand dollars each.
In total, the vessel and its crew are to pay six million dollars and one point one million naira in fines and restitution.
Reacting to the judgment, NDLEA Chairman, Brigadier General Mohamed Buba Marwa (rtd), described the ruling as a major victory against drug trafficking and a strong warning to international cartels.
He said the conviction signals that Nigeria’s territorial waters are no longer safe for illicit drug operations and warned that vessels used for trafficking would face severe financial and legal consequences.
Marwa also commended NDLEA officers involved in the operation and prosecution, as well as the judiciary, for the speedy handling of the case.