A team of the Nigerian Navy and other
security agencies have arrested 20 suspected pipeline vandals in the
creeks of Ilado and Ilase in the Amuwo Odofin Local Government Area of
Lagos.
In a statement issued on Tuesday by the
Pipelines and Products Marketing Company, the suspects were intercepted
by a patrol team between the Atlas Cove and Mosimi depot.
The PPMC said two Hilux vehicles
containing thousands of jerrycans filled with petroleum products,
equipment and several generators, were recovered from the suspects.
The statement said the suspects had been
taken to the custody of the Nigerian Naval Base, Western Command, Apapa
and were awaiting further interrogation.
The Managing Director of the PPMC, Mrs.
Esther Nnamdi -Ogbue, said the agency in the last two weeks had recorded
a huge success in the Atlas Cove and Mosimi areas in tackling oil
theft.
“The PPMC will collaborate with the
Nigerian Navy, the Army and other security agencies to ensure that the
activities of vandals stop.
“We hope that those apprehended will soon be prosecuted to serve as a deterrent to others,” Nnamdi-Ogbue was quoted as saying.
The PPMC recently said that the nation
lost about N50bn in 10 months as a result of vandalisation of petroleum
pipelines in some parts of the country.
The statement read in part, “In line
with the directives of Mr. President to ensure zero tolerance for crude
oil theft and pipeline vandals, the measures put in place by the
Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Ibe Kachikwu, have started
yielding positive results.
“Between the Atlas Cove and Mosimi
depot, a team of Nigerian Navy, the army and other security agencies
collaborating with the NNPC/PPMC apprehended a 20-man syndicate which
included a woman.
“These are notorious members of a gang specialised in pipeline vandalism and oil theft in the Ilado/Ilase areas.”
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