NCC Raids Ibadan Bookshops Over Piracy, Arrests Suspects

The Nigerian Copyright Commission has clamped down on bookshops in Ibadan, Oyo State, over the sale of pirated books, arresting several suspects and sealing multiple outlets.

The raid, carried out on Saturday, was led by the Oyo State Coordinator of the commission, Oluropo Oke, with support from operatives of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps.

Shops affected included Genesis, God’s Grace, Idera, Ireti-Olu, Oluseyi, and Blessings Bookshops, among others, located in Beere, Oritamerin, Dugbe, Gbagi, and Agbeni areas of the city.

Oke said the operation was part of the commission’s mandate to tackle piracy, especially during the school season when demand for textbooks surges. She explained that inspectors checked displays, traced sources of supply, and monitored sellers to ensure that pirated materials were not being stocked.

She noted that many of the shops lacked proper records or receipts to prove the authenticity of their books. Some receipts only showed lump sums without listing titles or authors, which she described as evidence of shady practices.

The coordinator stressed that excuses about publishers failing to meet market demand could not justify the circulation of pirated works, warning that piracy harms creativity, undermines the economy, and floods the market with substandard materials.

She assured that those arrested during the raid would face prosecution in accordance with the law and cautioned bookshop owners against obstructing enforcement officers.

The crackdown follows a similar raid in November 2024, when the commission stormed bookshops in Ajegunle, Lagos, seizing pirated books worth about ₦20 million. That operation, led by Deputy Director of Operations Charles Amudipe, also drew resistance from some shop owners but was completed with the support of security operatives.

The NCC reiterated that piracy is a criminal offence and urged booksellers nationwide to deal strictly in genuine publications, vowing to sustain its enforcement drive across the country.