Nigerian Navy Hands Over 8 Suspected Oil Thieves, Smuggled Petrol To NSCDC, Impounds N350m Worth Of Contrabands

The authority of the Nigerian Navy has handed over eight suspected oil thieves along side some smuggled petrol to the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, NSCDC.
The Nigerian Navy made the announcements via a statement posted on its website on Monday by the Directorate Of Information.
The Navy revealed that the suspects were handed over by the Commander of Nigerian Navy Ship, Victory, Commodore Vincent Okeke in Calabar.
The statement further listed the suspected oil thieves to include Blessing Bassey Etim, Anano Solomon Edimo, Christopher Enefion Etim, and Ndiba Victor.
Others suspects were Blessed Samson Akpan, Uzoma James, Edet Ekpenyong Esu and Emmanuel Iseh Bassey.
Okeke in his remarks explained how the suspects were arrested. Adding that, 81 drums of smuggled petrol was recovered.
He said “On 12 September 2019, NNS Victory patrol team intercepted and arrested three wooden boats laden with drums of substance suspected to be Premium Motor Spirit. The boats had eight crew members and were intercepted offshore Ibaka while on outbound transit to Cameroon.
“The drums of suspected PMS were concealed under several empty drums all in a bid to evade arrest. However, after offloading at the Base, a total of 81 drums of PMS were recovered.”
Okeke however, revealed that the suspects were released on bail until the navy was able to build case against them, adding that, they were later rearrested.
He said “These suspects were granted bail to afford the Base adequate time to investigate the matter. They were re-arrested on 15 October 2019 upon the establishment of a prima facie case against them.”
The Commander attributed the success of the operation to the directive of the Chief Of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Ibok Ette Ibas, curb smuggling activities on the waterways. Adding that, the Nigerian Navy has impounded over N350 million worth of contrabands since 2018.
Okeke said “In line with this directive, NNS Victory has continued to make several arrests. From 2018 to date, the Base has arrested a good number of wooden boats laden with about 21,000 bags of rice, and other contraband items valued at over N350 million. It is unfortunate that despite the relentless efforts of the Base, these suspected smugglers decided to test their luck. The present arrest of these suspects, therefore, further underscores the Base’s intolerance to smuggling activities within the Calabar waterways.”
He added that the suspects with the smuggled product have been handed over to the NSCDC.
“The confiscated items and the eight suspected smugglers are hereby handed over to the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps for further investigation and prosecution,” Okeke said.
The state Acting Commandant of NSCDC, Deputy Commandant Etom Ofem, confirmed the development adding that, the commission would proceed to court after its preliminary investigation was completed.
Ofem said “After completing our preliminary investigation, we will proceed to court immediately. The outcome of the investigation will determine exactly which way we will go.”