The Nigerian Navy has warned crude oil thieves and other criminal elements that there will be no hiding place for them on the country’s waterways, as it intensifies maritime surveillance and security operations.
The warning was issued by the Director of Naval Information, Navy Captain Abiodun Folorunsho, during an interview on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief on Thursday.
Folorunsho said the Nigerian Navy’s improved surveillance capabilities, combined with sustained operations under the Chief of the Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Idi Abbas, had made it increasingly difficult for criminals to operate undetected.
“The message from the Nigerian Navy is: there is no hiding place with our maritime surveillance equipment and with the sustained drive under the directive of the incumbent Chief of the Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Idi Abbas.
“I just wish to tell them—I mean these criminal elements that want to come to perpetuate these crimes—their days are numbered, and if we catch you, of course, we’ll ensure that you face the law,” he said.
His warning came a day after the Nigerian Navy announced the discovery of three suspected illegal refining sites and six reservoirs containing approximately 99,000 litres of products suspected to be stolen crude oil and illegally refined Automotive Gas Oil.
The Navy said the discoveries were made in its operational areas across Rivers and Delta states.
Folorunsho described those involved in crude oil theft as sophisticated criminal syndicates, stressing that large-scale oil theft required significant resources and organisation.
“You don’t steal crude at that scale without some wherewithal to be able to make it happen,” he said.
The naval spokesman noted that large-scale crude oil theft often involved the use of vessels and other resources required to operate at sea.
“I mean, when you’re talking about metric tonnes, you’re talking about ships, and you know what it takes to operate at sea. It’s not something that you just come by on the road,” he said.
Folorunsho also said increased investment in the Nigerian Navy had significantly improved its ability to monitor the country’s maritime territory.
He attributed the development to what he described as painstaking investments by the Nigerian Government in modern maritime surveillance equipment.
“The Nigerian Navy has, over the years, due to some painstaking investments by the Nigerian Government, acquired some of the finest maritime surveillance equipment,” he said.
According to him, the surveillance systems make it increasingly difficult for criminals to operate within Nigerian waters and the country’s Exclusive Economic Zone without being detected.
“It’s almost impossible for you to operate in Nigerian waters and well within our Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) without us being able to see you,” Folorunsho said.
He explained that the Navy could detect large vessels involved in suspicious activities and move to intercept them before their operations were completed.
“So it is making it almost impossible for these guys to just carry very large vessels and go out there. Whenever they start, we see them and immediately intercept to make sure that it’s unsuccessful,” he added.
The Navy’s latest warning comes amid continued efforts by security agencies to tackle crude oil theft and illegal refining activities in the Niger Delta.
Folorunsho said the Navy would continue to use its surveillance capabilities and enforcement operations to deny criminal groups the opportunity to exploit the country’s maritime resources.