Nigerian Copyright Commission busts printing hub in Lagos, ARREST 4 Suspects

The Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC) has busted printing outlets located in Shomolu area of Lagos State, arrested suspects and seized pirated works in an anti-piracy operation tagged "Shomolu Bust".

In line with the policy of NCC to regulate the printing industry in Nigeria by reducing the level of piracy to the barest minimum, operatives of the Commission acting on intelligence, carried out an anti-piracy operation in Shomolu printing hub on Friday, 20th September, 2024. 

During the anti-piracy operation, the team, led by Deputy Director and Head of Operations, Lagos Office of the Commission, Mr. Charles Amudipe, raided printing outlets located in Awofeso Street, Ogunaike Street and Apata Street in Shomolu area of Lagos State where it was suspected that the printing of pirated works was in progress.

In the printing outlets visited, operatives of the Commission arrested four suspects and seized thousands of printed and unbinded sheets of suspected pirated literary works as well as front and back covers of literary works while the printing shops were sealed. 

The estimated value of the seized materials is Ten Million Naira (N10,000,000).

The titles of the confiscated printed items are; "Fundamental Facts - Business Studies", "Fundamental Facts - Social Studies", “Queen Premier”, "New General Mathematics" and other unidentifiable literary works.

The Director and Head of Lagos Office of the Commission, Mrs. Lynda Alphaeus, representing the Director-General, recalled that the Commission recently mandated all printers who deal in book printing to have adequate documentation about the source of books they are dealing in. 

She warned that any printer who is not keeping the expected record as provided by the Copyright Act will be severely dealt with. 

Coming few weeks after an anti-piracy raid in Yaba Book Market, this Shomolu raid is also to send a message to the public that the Nigerian Copyright Commission has upscaled its anti-piracy activities and that the Commission will not tolerate piracy in any form by Booksellers, Schools, Printers.