Illegal Refining Sites: Nigerian Army Takes Action on 34 of Them, Speaks Afterwards

• The Nigerian Army’s 6 Division has dismantled 34 illegal refining sites, arrested eleven suspected oil thieves, and seized over 80,650 litres of stolen products in the Niger Delta
• These operations, conducted from November 18 to 24, 2024, involved coordinated efforts across Rivers, Bayelsa, Delta, Edo, and Akwa Ibom states, resulting in significant seizures and arrests
• The General Officer Commanding, Major General Jamal Abdussalam, commended the troops for their resilience and assured continued efforts to thwart criminal activities in the region

The 6 Division of the Nigerian Army has successfully destroyed 34 illegal refining sites, arrested eleven suspected oil thieves, and seized over 80,650 litres of stolen products in the Niger Delta.

This achievement follows several coordinated clearance operations conducted alongside other sister agencies in Rivers, Bayelsa, Delta, Edo, and Akwa Ibom states between November 18 and 24, 2024.

Detailed Operations and Seizures

Acting Deputy Director of 6 Division Army Public Relations, Lt. Col. Jonah Danjuma, disclosed these details in a statement issued in Port Harcourt on Sunday.

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He outlined the comprehensive operations, particularly in Rivers State, where over eight illegal refining sites in Buguma Creeks, Asari-Toru Local Government, were deactivated, and dugout pits containing over 25,000 litres of stolen products were handled.

Additionally, at Iyalama/Bakana in Buguma, a Wellhead used by criminals as a loading point was discovered, leading to the confiscation of several cooking pots, receivers, and four wooden boats with over 8,000 litres of stolen products.

Danjuma also noted that troops intercepted a wooden boat stocked with over 6,000 litres of condensate and two wooden boats loaded with over 3,000 litres of stolen crude in the Ogaji-Ama area of Buguma South East River.

Successes in Other States

The operations extended to Bonny LGA, where an illegal refining site with over 10,000 litres of stolen crude was discovered in Asaramatoro Creek.

Similar successes were recorded in Ahoada West LGA, where a wooden boat with over 2,000 litres of stolen products was intercepted. In Ogba/Egbema/Ndoni LGA, over 3,000 litres of stolen crude concealed in sacks were recovered.

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Additionally, an armed vandal was neutralized at Oboburu in ONELGA, with one pump action gun and five cartridges recovered.

Navy Cracks Down on Illegal Refinery

Meanwhile, Legit.ng earlier reported that the Nigerian Navy has dismantled an illegal refinery located along the Isaka/Ogoloma River in Rivers State, which had the capacity to produce over two million liters of automotive gasoline oil (AGO) daily.

This operation, led by the Nigerian Navy Ship (NNS) Pathfinder, involved the destruction of more than 500 crude oil processing drums using a swamp buggy.

Source: Legit.ng