Police recover stolen vehicles from Netherlands in international operation

Abdullateef Fowewe

The Nigeria Police Force has taken a significant step in combating transnational organised crime by recovering two high-end vehicles stolen from the Netherlands and illegally brought into Nigeria.

This was revealed in a statement on Monday by CSP Benjamin Hundeyin, Force Public Relations Officer.

In a coordinated operation between INTERPOL National Central Bureaus (NCB) Abuja and The Hague, a 2020 Toyota C-HR and a 2019 Toyota RAV4 were recovered from Lagos and Akwa Ibom States.

The vehicles were stolen in Amsterdam and Midden-Nederland and shipped via the Port of Antwerp, Belgium, arriving in Apapa, Lagos, by late 2023.

Following the recovery, the force initiated civil forfeiture proceedings at the Federal High Court, Abuja.

The court granted a final forfeiture order, enabling lawful repatriation of the vehicles to the Netherlands through the insurance company.

On October 20, 2025, the Nigeria Police, through INTERPOL NCB Abuja, formally handed over the vehicles to representatives of the insurance company and the Dutch Embassy in Nigeria, marking the success of this cross-border restitution.

“The Inspector-General of Police, IGP Kayode Adeolu Egbetokun, Ph.D., NPM, commended the operatives of INTERPOL NCB Abuja for their professionalism and the effective synergy with international partners, particularly INTERPOL NCB The Hague. He noted that the successful recovery and repatriation of the vehicles reflect the Force’s firm commitment to global law enforcement cooperation and to ensuring that criminal networks involved in cross-border vehicle theft and smuggling are denied the proceeds of their crimes.

“The Nigeria Police Force remains dedicated to intensifying intelligence-led policing and strengthening international collaborations aimed at tackling all forms of transnational organized crime,” the statement noted.