The Nigerian Navy has intensified its crackdown on oil-related crimes in the Niger Delta, dismantling an illegal fuel storage and distribution facility in Bonny Local Government Area of Rivers State and recovering about 13,000 litres of suspected illegally refined Automotive Gas Oil (AGO).
The operation was conducted by personnel of the Forward Operating Base (FOB) Bonny under Operation Delta Sentinel, according to a statement issued on Thursday by the Director of Naval Information, Navy Captain Abiodun Folorunsho.
According to the Navy, operatives uncovered a makeshift petroleum storage and distribution site equipped with large-capacity storage tanks, reservoirs, drums, hoses and other equipment allegedly used for the illegal handling and distribution of petroleum products.
The Service said the recovered products, alongside the illegal infrastructure, were secured and processed in accordance with established operational procedures.
Folorunsho stated that preliminary findings indicate the facility served as a hub for illegal petroleum activities that undermine Nigeria’s economy and threaten the integrity of the country’s oil and gas assets.
He disclosed that investigations are ongoing to identify and apprehend individuals connected with the illicit operation.
“The illegal facility is believed to have supported criminal activities associated with the unlawful petroleum products trade, thereby undermining national economic interests and the integrity of Nigeria’s oil and gas infrastructure. Relevant investigations are ongoing, while efforts continue to identify all persons connected with the illegal operation,” he said.
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The Navy described the successful raid as another breakthrough in its sustained campaign against crude oil theft, illegal refining and oil bunkering across the Niger Delta.
Folorunsho noted that the operation reflects the Service’s determination to dismantle criminal networks involved in economic sabotage while protecting critical national infrastructure.
He reaffirmed that the Navy would continue to sustain Operation Delta Sentinel and other security operations aimed at denying oil thieves and other economic saboteurs freedom to operate within Nigeria’s maritime environment.
The latest seizure forms part of ongoing efforts by the Nigerian Navy to curb illegal refining and crude oil theft, crimes that continue to pose serious challenges to national revenue generation and the security of the country’s oil and gas sector.
