Navy Handover Impounded Vessel Loaded With Alleged Stolen Crude Oil to EFCC in Bayelsa

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, has taken over from the Nigerian Navy, a vessel marked MT TIS IV laden with suspected stolen crude oil arrested by the Nigerian Navy Ship (NNS) Soroh, at the Akassa River in Brass Local Government Area last December.

Also handed over to the EFCC were twenty-two crew members of the vessel.

The Commander NNS Soroh, Commodore Patrick Effah, who handed over the vessel to officials of the EFCC led by Mr. Anthony Mark, in Brass Local Government Area of Bayelsa State, on Saturday, said after preliminary investigation they have established the fact that the vessel and her crew are complicit in crime that bothers on economic sabotage.

He said the vessel which was arrested on December 6, 2021, with 22 crew members was loaded with about 700,000 litres of illegally sourced crude oil.

Effah said, “We have established the fact that the vessel and her crew are complicit in crime that bothers on economic sabotage as a result of that we are here to officially handover the vessel and her crew to EFCC to carry out further investigations and prosecute the offenders for economic crime.”

Receiving the impounded vessel and her crew members, the leader of the EFCC team from the Port Harcourt Zonal Office, Mr Anthony Mark, Assistant Superintendent of EFCC, said the Commission will after its investigation do the needful in accordance with the law.

Credit: Vanguard News Nigeria