Personnel of the Nigerian Navy Ship, NNS Beecroft, Apapa, Lagos, have foiled an attempt by some vandals to siphon petroleum products from the Single Buoy Mooring, SBM, operated by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, in Lagos.
Consequently, 10 suspected vandals were arrested with hoses and other implements recovered.
The suspects were said to have stormed the SBM facility around 2 a.m., on Sunday, in three boats with some hoses, which they reportedly intended to siphon the product from the main source, transferring it to tank farms in the Apapa area of the state.
Briefing journalists at the NNS Beecroft parade ground, yesterday, during the handover of the suspects to the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, NSCDC, shortly after a visit to the SBM facility, the Commander, NNS Beecroft, Commodore Kolawole Oguntuga, attributed the arrest to the deployment and use of the Falcon Eye Maritime Awareness facility.
He assured that the Nigerian Navy under the leadership of the Chief of the Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Emmanuel Ogala, would ensure that the maritime environment was safe for legitimate businesses to thrive.
One of the suspects, Jonah Alari, who claimed to have paddled one of the boats, said: “I am a boat driver. Ola invited us to come and load for him on a vessel. We got there around midnight but did not see him and decided to berth at the SBM and wait for him, only to be arrested by the Special Boat Service, SBS.”
Another suspect, who identified himself as Ola, said he hired the services of the other nine suspects, who, according to him, lived in Tarkwa Bay Island.
But he said he was a Ship Chandelier and had gone to collect 60 gallons of petroleum products from an unidentified crew member in one of the vessels.
The 30-year-old Ola said: “I hired them because I was told to bring 60 jerricans to take petroleum products in exchange for the provisions I sold to one of the ship officers on board the African Support vessel.”
Receiving the handover note from Commodore Oguntuga, Head, Anti Vandal, NDSDC, Lagos State Command, Musa Jubril, said the corps would proceed with further investigation, adding: “Our investigation will unravel both the sponsors and those who probably fled. At the end of our investigation, we will charge them to court.”
