Fikemi Adelowokan, a Nigerian living in Canada, has accused Shully Export and Import Limited of confisticating a package sent to her from Nigeria by her brother-in-law. The delivery company, though, says this is due to the N150,000 bribe demanded by officials of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), who intercepted the package.

Adelowokan informed FIJ that on August 23, her brother-in-law sent a package to her from Lagos to Canada through Shully Export and Import. The package included a clipper, prescription medicines for her father, a document, and other items.

On September 7, Adelowokan’s husband received a message from Shully Export stating that the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) had confisticated his document and detained their employee for being in possession of someone else’s driver’s licence.

Shully Export also claimed that the NDLEA demanded N150,000 from them for the release of their staff member, but later released the person for N80,000.

Following Shully Export’s alleged payment to NDLEA, the delivery service has refused to release Adelowokan’s package to her. This is despite their representative in Canada contacting Adelowokan and informing her to expect delivery on September 13.

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When asked why her package was being withheld, Shully Export replied in a message that the driver’s licence was not supposed to be in their possession and had been confiscated by the NDLEA. They also said that Adelowokan’s package would be released after she had given a refund of the N80,000 paid to NDLEA by the delivery firm.

Adelowokan maintains that a driver’s licence was not part of her parcel. She says it was an extract from the FRSC in Nigeria addressed to the minister of transportation in Alberta, Canada, to verify her husband’s driving records so he could be issued a driver’s licence in Canada.

Adelowokan claims that her shipment has been at Shully Export for almost two months and that the delivery firm has been quiet.

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In an effort to retrieve her property, Adelowokan, through her legal representative, RockSmith Partners, copied Shully Exports in a letter addressed to NDLEA.

On September 26, Adelowokan contacted Shully Export to inquire about her shipment. Shully Export acknowledged the letter from Adelowokan’s legal counsel and stated that the officer who collected the N80,000 for the release of their employee had been absent, and that Adelowokan should give her some time.

FIJ reached out to Shully Export over Whatsapp to react to the claims, but the delivery business declined to provide any information.

FIJ also tried to contact NDLEA through phone calls, text messages, and email, but had not received a reply as of press time.

This report was produced with support from the Wole Soyinka Centre for Investigative Journalism (WSCIJ) under the Collaborative Media Engagement for Development Inclusivity and Accountability project (CMEDIA) funded by the MacArthur Foundation