The Nigerian Navy has arrested four oil thieves in separate incident of pipeline vandalism.
Oil equipment suspected to be used in vandalizing Oil Mining Lease-18 in Elem Krakama Creek in the Degema Local Government Council of Rivers State was also excavated by the Navy.
The Commander, Nigerian Navy Ship Pathfinder, Commodore Suleman Ibrahim, said the Navy spotted the illicit activities by its patrol helicopter on July 11, 2023 and moved into action where it dismantled the equipment used in siphoning crude oil on Oil Well 17 operated by the Nigeria National Petroleum Company Limited.
Ibrahim, who led newsmen to the site on Saturday, said the discovery led to the dismantling of the multiple pipelines buried in the ground.
He said excavation was done in collaboration with the NNPCL, and expressed shock at the level of expertise deployed by the suspects.
Ibrahim stated that such massive oil theft could not be done by amateurs, saying the syndicate were sophisticated people with expertise.
