As part of its renewed campaign against piracy, the Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC) has confiscated several cartons and bags of suspected pirated literary works worth about N7million, belonging to different rights owners, during an anti-piracy operation carried out at an outlet in Garki Market, Abuja, on 4th September 2026. The Commission, in a statement made... The post NCC Raids Garki Market Store, Seizes Pirated Books Worth N7m appeared first on New Telegraph .
As part of its renewed campaign against piracy, the Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC) has confiscated several cartons and bags of suspected pirated literary works worth about N7million, belonging to different rights owners, during an anti-piracy operation carried out at an outlet in Garki Market, Abuja, on 4th September 2026.
The Commission, in a statement made available to New Telegraph, stated that the operation, which was intelligence-led, was conducted by the Commission’s enforcement team led by the Director of Operations, Mr Femi Ajala, with the support of armed police personnel from the FCT Command.
“Acting on credible intelligence regarding the suspected storage and distribution of pirated books, the enforcement team moved into the location and discovered a substantial quantity of books suspected to have been reproduced and distributed without the authorisation of the respective copyright owners.
“The team gained access to the store, seized and evacuated several cartons and bags of suspected infringing publications, and subsequently sealed the premises.”
Speaking on the operation, the Director of Operations, Mr Ajala, said the action was part of the NCC’s intelligence-driven approach to disrupting copyright piracy and protecting the legitimate interests of authors, publishers and other right owners.
He emphasised that piracy remains a serious threat to Nigeria’s creative and publishing industries because it deprives legitimate right owners of income from their works and undermines continued investment in creativity and publishing.
“The operation was intelligence-driven. We received information about the location and acted on that intelligence. The volume of books recovered shows the seriousness of the situation and the need for sustained enforcement,” the Director of Operations stated.
He explained that the Commission would not relent in tracking down those involved in the illegal reproduction, distribution and commercial exploitation of copyrighted works.
“The Commission will continue to disrupt piracy activities and investigate all those involved.”
Mr. Ajala, assured that further investigation would commence immediately to establish the ownership, source, distribution network and other circumstances surrounding the seized publications, with a view to identifying those responsible and ensuring that they face the full weight of the law.
He further warned pirates and other persons engaged in the commercial exploitation of copyrighted works without the requisite authorisation that the Commission would continue to deploy intelligence, surveillance and enforcement operations to disrupt their activities.
The Director of Operations also disclosed that the Commission’s enforcement efforts would extend beyond conventional piracy locations to other areas where pirated books may be introduced into the market, including educational environments.
The Commission emphasised that the fight against book piracy is not merely an enforcement issue but a critical intervention to protect Nigeria’s authors, publishers, researchers, educators and the wider creative economy.
The NCC therefore urges members of the public, rights owners, publishers and other stakeholders to provide relevant information that could assist the Commission in identifying and disrupting piracy networks.
According to the statement, some titles seized during the raid include: Purple Hibiscus; The Magic of Thinking Big; New General Mathematics for Senior and Junior Secondary Schools 1,2 and 3; Stan Basic Science and Technology for Primary School, Workbook 3; Lantern, Steps to Quantitative and Verbal Reasoning 3; and Classic Basic Technology for Junior Secondary Schools 3.
The titles seized also incluude: Active Basic Science and Technology for Junior Secondary Schools and Work Book 2; Queen Primer, Royal School Series, Part 1; WABP Physical and Health Education for Primary Schools, 1 and 4; Learn Mathematics 5; New School Physics for Senior Secondary Schools; MacMillan Champion Primary Mathematics, 3 and 4; Tonad, Essential Commerce for Senior Secondary Schools; among several others.
