Troops destroy 41 refineries, arrest 18 suspects in Niger Delta

Troops of Operation Delta Safe (OPDS) have destroyed 41 illegal refineries and recovered more than 1.06 million litres of crude oil in the Niger Delta.

The Director of Defence Media Operation, Maj.-Gen. Musa Danmadami, stated this at the bi-weekly news conference on the operations of the armed forces held on Thursday in Abuja.

The operations, according to him, were carried out in the last two weeks in the region.

He added that 156 cooking ovens, 189 storage tanks, 12 dugout pits and 15 wooden boats were also destroyed by the troops.

Danmadami revealed that 13,500 litres of Automotive Gas Oil (AGO), 8,500 litres of Premium Motor Spirit and six vehicles were seized with 18 suspects arrested in the operations conducted in creeks, waterways, high sea, towns and cities of Bayelsa, Delta and Rivers.

The spokesman said: “The troops on April 25, arrested five suspected cultists who attacked members of a vigilance group at Iyara road in Warri South Local Government Area of Delta State.

READ ALSO: Troops destroy 81 illegal refineries, arrest suspected oil thieves in Niger Delta

“Two pistols, two knives, two machetes and one motorcycle were recovered from the suspects.

“The troops during a fighting patrol to Sansan and Monikiri camp, Bonny Local Government Area of Rivers encountered pirates who fled on sighting them.

“Troops destroyed their camp and recovered six speed boats with one 90HP engine and five 40HP engines as well as seven generators, five pumping machines and seven radios.

“Also, the air component of Operation Delta Safe carried out a series of air interdiction and armed reconnaissance mission within the theatre of operation that recorded some remarkable results.

“Notably, between April 21 and April 27, several air interdictions were conducted at the Ogbogbo community in Ahoada West Local Government Area and Abisse Waterways in Akuku-Toru LGA of Rivers.

“Some identified illegal refining sites, illegal tanks and reservoirs loaded with suspected refined products were seen and bombarded accordingly.

“The airstrike was observed to have set off explosions that burnt down the storages and reservoirs.”

Join the conversation

Opinions

Support Ripples Nigeria, hold up solutions journalism

Balanced, fearless journalism driven by data comes at huge financial costs.

As a media platform, we hold leadership accountable and will not trade the right to press freedom and free speech for a piece of cake.

If you like what we do, and are ready to uphold solutions journalism, kindly donate to the Ripples Nigeria cause.

Your support would help to ensure that citizens and institutions continue to have free access to credible and reliable information for societal development.

Donate Now