In less than a month, Tantita Security Services Nigeria Limited (TSSNL) in collaboration with the special task force set up by the Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Emmanuel Ogalla, has impounded another oil bunkering vessel in the coastal axis of Bayelsa State.
The bunkering vessel, MT HARBOR SPIRIT, with registration number 8226272 was impounded at Sengana Oilfield, off the coast of Bayelsa State on Sunday by the operatives of TSSNL supported by the special task force set up by Ogalla, made up of all arms of security agencies.
They confiscated the vessel while siphoning crude oil from oil-fields in Sengana axis off coast of oil-rich Bayelsa state.
The vessel and the crew are currently anchored at Oporoza waterfront, Warri South West Local Government Area of Delta state.
The latest incident came on the heels of January 11th arrest of an oil bunkering vessel, MT KALI, in the Pennington Oil-fields of the Anglo-Dutch oil giant, Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC).
LEADERSHIP gathered that 15 persons, including crew members and host community collaborators were apprehended in the incident.
The captain of the vessel identified himself as Joseph Shitu.
Shitu, who owned up to the nefarious act, said he was manipulated by his employers into engaging in the act of economic sabotage.
He said he was planning to wriggle out of the illicit deal before the operatives of TSSNL and security agencies swung on them.
The vessel and the suspects were paraded before selected journalists on Tuesday, by the executive director, Technical Operations, Warredi Enisuoh and the Head, Investigation, Police Task Force on Petroleum and Illegal Bunkering (IGP-STFBIP) under the command of Mr. Lot Lantoh Garba.
In his remarks, Enisuoh attributed the feat and success to the synergy between TSSNL and the special security team set up by Ogalla, which is made up of the Nigerian Army, Nigeria Navy, police, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Department of State Services (DSS), Nigerian Airforce, among others.
Enisuoh disclosed that the ill-fated ship was not registered in Nigeria, adding that MT HARBOR SPIRIT was a Moldovan vessel.
He said, “We are working in synergy with all arms of the security forces, to bring to the bearest minimum, if not completely eliminate the situation of crude oil theft and what we can see here today is a product of that synergy, which was heavily supported by the Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Emmanuel Ogalla.
“This ship was monitored specifically by the Nigerian Navy as well as ourselves (TSSNL) too. And it came close a lot for apprehension on this particular day, just about two days ago, precisely on early hours of Sunday . It has got about 80,000 litres of crude oil and not that we could not have allowed them to take more but that is not the objective.
“The objective is to prevent them from doing that. So what they do is they show their motive and intention. We arrested about 13 crew members and a couple of others, who give them support from the community as well,” Enisuoh added.
