Oil theft: Army destroys 43 illegal refineries in Niger Delta, arrests suspects

Troops from the Nigerian Army’s 6th Division have arrested 19 suspected oil thieves and dismantled 43 illegal crude oil refining sites across the Niger Delta region.

The Army disclosed that its operatives also confiscated approximately 260,000 litres of stolen crude oil products during operations in four states.

Acting Deputy Director of Army Public Relations for the 6th Division, Jonah Danjuma, revealed this in a statement issued on Sunday in Port Harcourt.

Danjuma said the operations, conducted between November 4 and 10, took place in Rivers, Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, and Delta states as part of an intensified clampdown on oil bunkering and illegal refining activities in the region.

“In the operations, troops dismantled over 43 illegal oil bunkering hubs, arrested 19 economic saboteurs, and seized over 260,000 litres of stolen products. Additionally, 11 vehicles, 21 boats, and 11 motorcycles used for crude theft were immobilised,” the statement read.

The Army stated that in Rivers State alone, troops dismantled seven active illegal refining hubs in the Abesa and Kula areas of Akuku-Toru Local Government Area, seizing over 60,000 litres of illegally refined Automotive Gas Oil.

In separate raids around Cawthorne Channel 1 and the Bille area, several illegal bunkering sites, three fibre boats, five wooden boats, and 41,000 litres of stolen products were destroyed.

In Buguma Creeks, four illegal refining hubs, eight cooking pots, and three boats stocked with over 12,500 litres of stolen products were dismantled.

Troops also intercepted wooden boats containing over 10,000 litres of stolen products in Odagwa, Akwa, Oza West, Oyigbo, Obozur, and Ayama areas.

Additionally, in Ogbonga Forest, six illegal refining hubs stocked with over 10,000 litres of crude were shut down, along with storage tanks and pumping equipment.

In Akwa Ibom, troops intercepted two tankers carrying 96,000 litres of stolen crude along the Okopedi Atai road in Ikot Abasi. They also seized three Toyota Camry vehicles transporting stolen AGO, whose drivers abandoned the vehicles and fled.

In Delta State, a tanker truck loaded with 45,000 litres of stolen products was intercepted, with the occupants fleeing at the sight of a military checkpoint. Troops also found two more tanker trucks, three pumping machines, and hoses used for offloading products from a barge at Willis Jetty in the Enerhen area.

Meanwhile, in Bayelsa State, troops intercepted a vehicle carrying 1,500 litres of stolen AGO and arrested three suspects along the Elebele-Emeyal road in Ogbia Local Government Area.

Around Sangana River in Southern Ijaw, a storage dump of stolen products was destroyed, and three suspects were apprehended with a pumping machine and unmeasured quantities of crude oil at Ashawo Fish Camp.

Commending the troops for the successful operations, General Officer Commanding the 6th Division, Major General Jamal Abdussalam, urged them to sustain their efforts to rid the region of economic saboteurs and facilitate increased oil production in Nigeria.