The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps has arrested five suspected oil thieves for allegedly siphoning 500,000 litres of crude oil from pipelines in Rivers.

The spokesman, NSCDC command in Rivers State, SC Olufemi Ayodele, announced this in a statement to journalists in Port Harcourt.

He revealed that the feat was achieved during a raid on 10 illegal bunkering sites at Odagwa community in Etche, Rivers.

He said, “The estimated 500,000 litres of crude oil were stored in about 50 illegally constructed reservoirs which were found in about 10 illegal refineries. The discovery resulted from credible intelligence that prompted our special intelligence squad to take action and uncovered 10 illegal refineries in Odawa forest. Five suspects were caught in the act of illegally refining crude oil within the illegal bunkering sites.’’

Mr Ayodele said that 10 cooking pots, a pumping machine, receiver tanks, 25 rubber hoses and several lengths of galvanized pipes were recovered from the sites.

He said that the pipes, containing an unspecified quantity of crude oil and adulterated diesel, were linked to six large reservoirs and 20 smaller reservoirs buried underground.

The spokesman described the activities of oil thieves in the state as unscrupulous and condemnable.

Mr Ayodele stated that the command would continue to maintain close collaborations with other security agencies to effectively tackle the menace of oil theft in the state. 

(NAN)