What happens when imported goods labelled as ordinary household products do not match their declared composition?
This study reports the forensic investigation of a suspicious consignment flagged by Nigerian security agencies after being declared as household cleaning products, cosmetics, and recreational smoking materials.
Initial field screening at the port of entry involved radiation surveys, portable X-ray fluorescence analysis, and spectroscopic testing. Although radiation levels remained within the normal background range and the initial elemental screening revealed no obvious threat, unusually high nitrate and nitrite concentrations were detected in a product labelled as bath salt.
The samples were subsequently examined using energy-dispersive X-ray fluorescence, instrumental neutron activation analysis, ultravioletโvisible spectroscopy, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, and gas chromatographyโmass spectrometry.
The product labelled as magnesium sulphate contained only about 0.23% magnesium and 6.27% sulphur, which was inconsistent with the declared composition. Ultravioletโvisible analysis also revealed a nitrate/nitrite concentration of 15.7%, approximately 10,000 times higher than the background levels recorded in the other samples.
Further analysis identified nitrate-related absorptions, hydrocarbon chains, amine features, and complex organic compounds. The combined results showed that the material was not an ordinary cosmetic or household cleaning product but a hazardous, mislabelled substance with characteristics consistent with an ammonium nitrateโfuel oil-type material.
The remaining samples, including cosmetics, cleaners, aluminium foil, charcoal, and fuel tablets, generally showed compositions consistent with their declared identities and did not present similar evidence of adulteration.
This investigation demonstrates the importance of combining field screening with advanced laboratory techniques when imported goods raise security concerns. It also highlights how forensic science can support regulatory agencies in identifying concealed hazardous materials, preventing illicit imports, and strengthening national security safeguards.
Read the full article here:
https://doi.org/10.61298/pnspsc.2026.3.268
Published in: Proceedings of the Nigerian Society of Physical Sciences