By Joy Yesufu
Nigerian Military high command has said that troops have recovered 715,325 litres of stolen crude oil and 148,415 litres of illegally refined diesel in the Niger Delta region.
They further said their operation led to the discovery and destruction of 11 dugout pits, five boats, 20 storage tanks, and 31 illegal refining sites. The troops also seized 31 cooking ovens, five vehicles, and three mobile phones.
Director of Defence Media Operations, Edward Buba who disclosed this while addressing journalists on Friday in Abuja on behalf of the military high command said that the recovered oil prevented the loss of an estimated $1.5 million in the south-south region.
He addedthat the troops also apprehended 20 perpetrators of oil theft and rescued 140 kidnapped hostages.
“Throughout the past week, troops also recovered a significant cache of weapons and ammunition, including 56 AK-47 rifles, 26 locally fabricated guns, 22 dane guns, one SMG rifle, seven pump-action guns, one fabricated Beretta pistol, seven locally made guns, five 60mm mortar bombs, and two small rubber gunpowder devices.
“They also seized 1,244 rounds of 7.62mm special ammo, 383 rounds of 7.62mm NATO ammo, 88 rounds of 7.62x54mm ammo, 78 live cartridges, 24 empty cases of 7.62mm ammo, 21 AK-47 magazines, one Baofeng radio, six vehicles, 11 motorcycles, five bicycles, 38 mobile phones, and N2.7m in cash” he noted
He said in the past week, troops made significant progress in their border security operations, neutralising 125 individuals involved in criminal activities and arresting 200 suspects.
He noted that the military was enhancing its operations to curb crude oil theft through a comprehensive and unified command structure involving all security agencies, in the Niger Delta.
“The new strategy targets key areas to boost crude oil production, enforce transparency among international oil companies, ensure the integrity of metering systems at flow stations, and track the transportation of crude oil from loading points to destinations.
“Operations also include rigorous surveillance of pipelines, jackets, and wellheads to prevent breaches”, he stated.
