The Defence Headquarters has stated that troops of OPERATION DELTA SAFE have thwarted oil theft worth 1,931,297,897, and arrested perpetrators within the last one week.
Maj. Gen. Markus Kangye, the Director of Defence Media Operations, made this known on Thursday during a press briefing at the Defence Headquarters in Abuja.
TheFact Daily notes that the military had, in the first quarter of 2025, put the worth of oil theft thwarted at over N7bn. Although perpetrators have been arrested, nothing is heard of prosecutions, jail terms or even the identities of these economic saboteurs. This inconsistent handling of suspects by the military and lack of transparency in investigations, continues to fuel suspicions of possible complicity or protection of powerful interests.
A breakdown of the stolen products, according to Kangye indicates 1,009,733 litres of stolen crude oil, 304,811 litres of illegally refined AGO and 3,480 litres of DPK. Others are 19,875 litres of PMS and 1,600 litres of engine oil.
Additionally, troops discovered and destroyed 351 crude oil cooking ovens, 418 dugout pits, 30 boats, 9 speedboats, 160 storage tanks, 721 drums and 95 illegal refining sites. Other items recovered include, pumping machines, drilling machines, tricycles, motorcycles, mobile phones and 42 vehicles.
Additionally, troops recovered large quantities of various arms, such as automatic weapons, RPG tubes, machine guns, locally fabricated guns, and improvised explosive devices. Also, some cache of live cartridges and assorted ammunition were recovered,
Kangye also revealed that in the month under review, troops neutralized scores of terrorists including one of their leaders, Nkwachi Eze, otherwise known as Onowu who has been on the wanted list of the military, and is responsible for coordinating series of attacks and kidnappings across the South East.
Furthermore, troops arrested one Buhari Umar, a wanted suspected gunrunner who also doubles as leader of a kidnapping syndicate terrorizing Gombe, Bauchi, Plateau and Kaduna States, just as troops of Operation WHIRL STROKE successfully arrested a 5-man kidnapping syndicate in Lafia LGA of Nasarawa State. They include Hassan Mohammed, Saleh Sani, Idi Yusuf, Adamu Danmai and Hassan Bello.
Kangye said also that during the period, 430 perpetrators of oil theft, terrorists and other criminal elements were apprehended, even as 173 kidnapped hostages were rescued while over 204 terrorists and members of their families surrendered to troops.
He averred that the Armed Forces of Nigeria remains focused and committed to ensuring national security and welfare of its personnel as troops continue to put in efforts to safeguarding the nation’s territorial integrity and protect citizens from all forms of threats.
He disclosed that the Armed Forces has, as part of their mandate, launched several key operations aimed at combating insurgency, terrorism, and other forms of criminal activities that threaten our communities.
“These operations are strategically designed and executed to ensure the safety of our people and the restoration of peace in affected regions”, he said.
While commending troops for their demonstration of remarkable courage and professionalism in the face of adversity, Maj. Gen. Kangye said the AFN is “collaborating closely with local and international partners to enhance intelligence-sharing and operational effectiveness”, adding that “the cooperation of local communities has also been invaluable in our intelligence-gathering efforts”.
