Troops Arrest 65 Oil Thieves, Confiscate N600m Worth Of Stolen Products

Troops deployed for Operations DELTA SAFE in the war against oil theft, illegal refineries and other criminal activities in the South-South region, have arrested 65 oil thieves and recovered 186,000 litres of stolen crude oil products.

The director, Defence Media Operations, Major General Musa Danmadami, who stated this during the biweekly update on the Armed Forces of Nigeria operations between May 18 – June 1, 2023, said the troops seized stolen products worth N604,401,127.00.

He said the troops also recovered 42,750 litres of Automotive Gas Oil, 4,500 litres of Premium Motor Spirit, 200 litres of Dual Purpose Kerosene, 250 storage tanks, 220 ovens, 32 dugout pits and 31 wooden boats, one gas welding cylinder, one pocking gas, two gas burners, two gas gauge, two adjustable spanners, one pumping machine, four outboards engines, 300 ammunitions, 15 AK47 magazines, 211 mobile phones, three vehicles, 100 wraps of suspected cannabis sativa, three and four pinches of substance suspected to be heroin and cocaine, 177 pinches of amphetamines and the sum of N17,300.00 only.

In a related development, he said the Air Component of Operation DELTA SAFE on May 18, 2023 conducted air interdiction operation at Krakrama.

“The location was observed to be active with illegal refining activities. Accordingly, the location was struck, with several illegal refined products and equipment destroyed in the air strike,” he stated.

Meanwhile, in the South-West, he said troops of Operation Awatse arrested 26 criminals and recovered one locally made pistol, three cartridges, 280gm of tramadol and two bottles of codeine.

Whereas in the South-East, troops of Operation Udo Ka neutralized five terrorists and arrested nine suspected terrorists.

The troops also recovered six motorcycles, five mobile phones, one vehicle, large quantities of substance suspected to be hard drugs.

He said all recovered items and apprehended suspected criminals have been handed over to the relevant authorities for further action.